THE Nutritionist-Dietitians’ Association of the Philippines (NDAP) warned non-dietitians against giving out diet plans to people, as they may not be giving the right advice and may be held liable.

Professor Zenaida Faisan-Velasco, NDAP national president, said in an interview that anyone caught giving out diet plans to people without license have to deal with the law.

Velasco said the organization is pushing for the rights and protection of all licensed nutritionists under Republic Act 10862 or an Act Regulating the Practice of Nutrition and Dietetics in the Philippines.

"Our mission is to improve the nutritional status here in the Philippines. We have a license that we would like to protect. Marami kasing reported nutritionists but hindi registered (There are a lot of nutritionists, but they are not registered)," Velasco said.

She added that as licensed nutritionists or dietitians, one must be careful with their credentials and should provide diet plans based on evidence and not just from the internet or magazine.

Equipped with evidence-based knowledge and practice, Velasco said the dietitians of the future should collaborate to support nutrition against ignorance to best serve the interest of different stake-holders nationwide and in the region.

"This is very important from womb to tomb because we are serving for the welfare of the people," Velasco said, as she also encouraged the public to seek diet plans from the licensed dietitians.

As of the moment, NDAP has noted 17,000 registered dietitians and nutritionists nationwide, which Velasco said, they still need more registered dietitians and nutritionists to serve the people.