Nutrition Management


Welcome to the Nutrition and Weight Management Center

The Nutrition and Weight Management program at Boston Medical Center is nestled in the Center for Endocrinology, Diabetes, Nutrition and Weight Management. We offer state-of-the-art diagnostic and treatment services encompassing the entire spectrum of nutritional disorders and weight management for individuals age 18 and older. Our team is comprised of 3 Nutrition Physicians, 4 Clinical Dietitians and 1 Surgical Dietitian. Individualized plans are developed for both risk reduction and/or management of the numerous medical conditions impacted by an individual’s nutritional status.

Our Adult Outpatient services fall into two distinct areas:

Medical Nutrition Therapy:
Nutritional diagnostic, therapy, and counseling services for the purpose of disease management provided by a registered dietitian.

Weight Management:
Strategies implemented to achieve and keep your body weight at a healthy level typically defined as a BMI of 18.5 – 24.9 kg/m˛. These weight management strategies can be medical and/or surgical in nature.

Is your body weight in the healthy range? CLICK HERE to check now If your weight is not in the healthy range, ask your doctor for a referral to our clinic.

Our Center is committed to providing you with comprehensive, convenient and effective care through programs encouraging lifestyle changes aimed at improving overall health. With the assistance of Boston Medical Center’s extensive interpreter services, we are proud to be able to offer appropriate nutritional therapy while also honoring the diverse ethnic, religious and cultural needs of our community.

Medical Nutrition Therapy
In addition to providing weight management counseling, our Registered, Licensed Dietitians provide individualized education and medical nutrition therapy for patients age 18 and over when referred by their primary care physician. Frequent referrals to our clinic include, but are not limited to, individuals with diabetes, cancer, cardiovascular disease, hypertensive disorders, lipid disorders, HIV, gastrointestinal dysfunction, healthy or complicated pregnancies, disordered eating, kidney and liver disease.

While most patients come to our clinic in the Preston Family Building for appointments with the dietitian, we do offer RD services in the Primary Care Clinic, Geriatric Clinic, Hem/Onc clinic, Cardiac Rehab and Lipid Clinic. If you are a patient in one of the mentioned clinics and you are referred for medical nutrition therapy, not weight management, please request to see the RD in that clinic. Weight management patients will be seen in the Preston Family Building.

The initial appointment with the dietitian will involve an assessment of the current nutritional problem followed by the development of an individualized plan. The proposed plan will be designed to address both the medical issue and the individual’s lifestyle. Subsequent appointments to assess progress, provide additional counseling or modify the plan will be scheduled according to the individual’s needs.

How to access individualized medical nutrition therapy

Obtain a referral from your Primary Care Physician which specifies diagnosis and type of nutritional counseling. If your PCP is located on the BMC campus, the referral should be sent via Logician. Otherwise, the referral can be either faxed to 617-638-7449 or mailed to our office at :
Boston Medical Center
Center for Endocrinology, Diabetes, Nutrition and Weight Management
Preston Family Building 2nd floor
732 Harrison Avenue
Boston, MA 02118
Attn: Stephanie Spaide MS RD LDN
Our office will contact you upon receipt of the referral. Unfortunately, due to insurance coverage and the complexity of medical nutrition therapy, an appointment can only be scheduled after our office r eceives the referral from your PCP.

Insurance Coverage: Health Insurance may cover or partially cover medical nutrition therapy; however, some insurance do not cover visits with a dietitian or will only cover visits for specific diagnoses. Please contact your insurance company to learn details about your specific coverage.

If you don’t have insurance or if your insurance will not cover dietitian visits, you have the option to self pay at the time of the visit. Please contact Patient Financial Services at 85 Concord Street Ground Floor PRIOR to your scheduled appointment for further details.
Please CLICK HERE to download the Self Pay Outpatient Form.

Weight Management
It is estimated that 45 million Americans diet each year while spending $33 billion a year on weight loss products. Despite our efforts, 65.2% of the American population is considered overweight or obese which translates to 127 million overweight and 60 million obese Americans. From self-consciousness to physical limitations, many overweight people feel that their size is keeping them from being the person they truly are. People who are overweight are also at risk for developing serious health problems such as heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, stroke, arthritis, and gallbladder disease. As a chronic disease, obesity requires lifelong treatment and medical care.

Our Weight Management Program staff is dedicated to the medical and surgical management of obesity. As a national leader in the weight management field, we are committed to providing to our patients with care that is comprehensive, convenient and, most importantly, effective. We will guide and encourage you in learning how to make lifelong changes in eating behavior, food choices, and activity levels. By integrating this knowledge into your daily lifestyle we can help you to attain your desired goal and pursue successful long-term weight management. Through eating plans, behavioral support and exercise, our strategies offer you a recipe for success.

Because we recognize the uniqueness of our patients' needs, we offer a full array of weight management options. This program is complete with group support sessions led by a registered dietitian with experience in weight management. She will assist you in achieving optimal health and wellness for lifelong success. You will also have individual appointments with a nutrition physician specialist and a dietitian to address medical concerns affected by diet and to help with meal planning and implementing behavior modification techniques.

Weight loss options include:
Balanced Calorie Deficit Diet - This dietary plan helps you learn to change food choices, portion sizes and preparation style. Diets are tailored to individual preferences, lifestyle, and goals in conjunction with a personalized program developed by your dietitian - and YOU. The nutritional plan is developed using the ADA recommendation that 30% of calories come from Fat, 20% of calories from Protein, 50 % of calories from carbohydrates. After the RD determines the appropriate calories for weight loss, you will be given material that divides food consumed into 6 groups – milk, protein, grains/starches, fruit, vegetables, and fat. Typical weight loss is 1-2 lbs/week.

Low Fat, High Protein, High Fiber: In this plan, calories are reduced to promote weight loss and the emphasis is on increasing protein and reducing starchy carbohydrates while eliminating added fats. Fruit and vegetable intake is liberal. Amount of weight loss will depend upon the number of calories you eat and amount of physical exercise daily. Weight loss may range from 1-4 pounds per week.

Dash Diet: This eating plan is low in saturated fat, cholesterol, and total fat while being rich in potassium, magnesium, and calcium, protein and fiber. The program is designed to improve your eating and exercise habits. Individuals choosing this program will have 6 months of free access to http://www.dashforhealth.com which will provide information about food, food preparation, eating out, losing weight and getting fit. The website also allows you to track progress in areas such as your weight, blood pressure and exercise. Typical weight loss is 1-2 lbs/week

Protein-sparing Modified Fast - A short-term approach that limits food choices and portion sizes. This diet consists mostly of poultry, fish and lean beef while carbohydrates (breads, cereals, pasta, rice, fruit, and most vegetables) are eliminated, resulting in faster weight loss.

Food and Formula Diet - Your daily intake consists of three shakes or soup plus 1-2 small meals, 1 HMR vitamin and 2 quarts of water or other non-caloric fluids. This diet provides 800-1400 calories per day and leads to steady, predictable weight loss. It allows the freedom of having 1-2 meals/day while limiting food choices.
  • HMR Benefit Bars are available as snacks
  • HMR Meals are available for meal replacement
Full Liquid Formula Diet - Meals are in the form of chocolate or vanilla frappe-like drinks or soup. Typically you will consume 5 shakes / day. This eliminates food choices, making dieting easier. The liquid diet is a complete, nutritionally sound meal plan. You will transition back to whole foods over a prescribed period of time. Please note: Insurance will not cover the cost of the shakes.

Diet and Pharmacotherapy: Pharmacotherapy utilizes FDA approved medications either to reduce your appetite or block fat absorption. These medications MUST be combined with one of the above eating plans or they won’t be effective. No medication has been FDA approved for indefinite use. The FDA medications available are phentermine ( Adipex) and sibutramine (Meridia?), which work to reduce your appetite, and orlistat (Xenical?), which blocks some of the fat in a low-fat meal plan from being absorbed. Alli is a non prescription FDA approved medication that is a reduced strength of orlistat ( Xenical) which can also be used in combination with one of the above eating plans.

Surgery - Boston Medical Center has been awarded the ASBS Bariatric Surgery Center of Excellence designation by the Surgical Review Corporation. Surgical Weight Loss may be recommended for patients who are more than 100 lbs. or 100% above their ideal body weight. Our Center offers both Roux- en Y gastric bypass and the Adjustable Gastric Band surgery both utilizing the laparoscopic method.

Roux en Y Surgery – “The Gold Standard” for gastric bypass surgeries. This procedure reduces the size of your stomach resulting in a feeling of fullness and satiety so less food is consumed. For most individuals, intolerance to sweet and high fat food develops which also limits caloric intake.

Adjustable Gastric Banding (also known as the LAP-BAND) – In this procedure, a hollow band made of silicone rubber is placed around the top of the stomach squeezing the stomach to make a small pouch. The narrow opening between the small pouch and the lower stomach allows food to stay in the pouch longer, thus providing the feeling of fullness.

While yielding excellent long-term results, as with any surgical procedure, there is the possibility of risks. As a result, surgery is typically restricted to those who cannot maintain a significant weight loss by following one of the dietary programs discussed above. Prior to surgery, a weight loss of 5-10 % is necessary to help reduce the risk of surgery; therefore, patients will initially work with clinicians in our medically managed program before being referred to the surgical team. If additional informational about surgical weight loss is desired, please call 617-414-8052.

HMR prepared meals: $4.00/meal
BMC pedometers:
$5.00

Dash For Health website:
Free 6 month access when selecting the clinic’s Dash
Diet. Click here for more information.