Meet Christine Devaney Towsley, our first Ontario team member! 

Christine is passionate about helping others to feel their personal best.  With over 10 years of practice experience, she has developed the skills and knowledge to support her clients through their nutrition concerns with compassion, gentleness and patience. 

She completed her nutrition studies at the University of Guelph; then moved to Timmins to fulfill her internship program through the Northern Ontario School of Medicine. 

Christine has a special interest in guiding clients to achieve ideal wellness – whether that means having more energy, less stress when meal planning, or having less digestive upset. She also enjoys supporting people living with high blood pressure, heart health issues, and body weight concerns.  

We asked Christine a few questions so you could get to know her better! 

What is your background as a Registered Ontario dietitian?

Upon completion of my internship in Northeastern Ontario, I joined the Timmins Family Health team as the sole dietitian.  I remained there for 3 years, working with a wonderful multidisciplinary team to provide support to patients of all ages and backgrounds.  This role allowed me to build my knowledge base and hone in on the “nutrition prescriptions” for a multitude of health concerns. I was responsible for providing health education to groups by creating workshops and presentations. There is great joy in hearing others share their stories in a group setting.  I was often inspired by the courage of individuals to share their setbacks and successes, which was a great comfort to others who believed they were alone in their struggle. 

After leaving the north I moved back to my hometown of Ottawa where I would spend the next 7 years as an in-store dietitian with Loblaw.  In this role I was not only responsible for supporting individual and group clients with their nutrition and health concerns I also provided education to groups via demonstrations, store tours, school presentations, cooking classes, outreach events and workplace presentations.  I was proudly the Loblaw media lead for Ottawa and was featured on several live morning news TV segments.   

These experiences afforded me the opportunity to understand how unique we truly are when it comes to our nutrition and eating history.  I have had the pleasure of getting to know hundreds of clients, guiding them towards their own path to wellness.   

I look forward to this new chapter with Health Stand, as we help clients achieve success on their own unique journeys! 

What is your favourite part about being a dietitian?

The best part about this profession is providing guidance to so many different people; from all walks of life. It’s having them trust me to help support them through their challenges, and to be able to see their lives improve throughout the course of our work together.  It’s meeting each client where they’re at, and working together to come up with small, tangible steps to achieve optimal wellness. 

What is one myth you want to clear up about dietitians?

That we are all foodies who love to cook, bake and meal plan!  I personally have never enjoyed cooking or baking.  I have to really be in the mood for a certain meal or baked good to take the time to shop for ingredients and prepare it.  I’m more of a “simple, yet satisfying” type of cook.  The majority of dinner’s we make at our house take about 30 mins to prepare, and that’s long enough for me! 

Favourite nerdy nutritious food chosen for health?

The first one that comes to mind is nutritional yeast.  As I am unable to enjoy dairy products, I am able to add a little bit of cheesiness to grilled veggies, popcorn and spaghetti with this special ingredient.  Plus, I always enjoy knowing I’m getting a good B12 boost at the same time! 

Favourite soulful food chosen for taste, enjoyment and social fun?

I absolutely love going out for dinner with my husband or close friends. There’s something so special about sharing a meal with others, sipping wine and enjoying appetizers and laughs with people you love. I love shrimp or yam tempura if its sushi night, tofu stir-fries, margaritas with fajitas…or sharing fresh baked chocolate chip cookies still warm from the oven with my kids. 

Looking for simple meal planning tips and healthy recipes for a healthier lifestyle? Sign up for our weekly newsletter for a healthy recipe of the week (and nutrition articles and videos with a balanced living philosophy to help encourage healthy habits but still save room for your favorites). Our nutrition newsletter is written by the Online / Calgary Nutritionists on our team who each hold a professional Registered Dietitian license to ensure you are getting credible advice. 

The post Get to Know your Ontario Dietitian Christine Devaney-Towsley appeared first on Health Stand Nutrition – Online Nutritionist Calgary Dietitian team.

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