Meet Sara Barthel, a dedicated licensed dietician, and Certified Nutrition Specialist, Gluten-free Practitioner, and Functional Medicine Health Coach.
She's committed to helping her patients feel their best and regain hope and excitement for their health and future possibilities.
In this month’s Provider Spotlight, Sara spoke candidly about her journey to become a functional healthcare practitioner, her experience overcoming her own health challenges, and clinical pearls that help her better transform patient outcomes.
I was always drawn to nutrition, but I learned about functional medicine through a friend and fellow triathlete who had MS. She used a functional medicine approach, diet, and lifestyle interventions to keep her condition in remission for over 15 years.
Years later, I went back to school for functional medicine after dealing with IBS and autoimmune thyroid disease myself and experiencing incredible frustration and helplessness after being told there was nothing wrong with me.
The combination of a thorough intake session and health history timeline, along with data from lab work, is a one-two punch for creating personalized protocols that can be life-changing for the women I work with.
Not only in terms of efficacy but also for simply validating that there's a reason for how they've been feeling!
Vibrant's technology and accuracy set them apart from other lab companies, and I trust the results.
My frequently ordered lab combination is the Gut Zoomer + Wheat Zoomer because it's the perfect starting point for answering critical questions about anything stemming from digestive insufficiency, infections, inflammation, intestinal permeability, and food sensitivities—which play a role in pretty much everything!
Commit to the process, and you will see results—you get out what you put in.
Our bodies have such a powerful, innate ability to heal and return to balance when given half a chance!
After reviewing hundreds of labs, I've concluded that a diagnosis means little in terms of what we can do to improve inflammation, sleep, stress management, detoxification, and nutrition.
I've never seen anyone with optimal microbiome diversity on a Gut Zoomer, which protects us from opportunistic pathogens and infections taking over—we can all do better at eating the rainbow and a wider variety of colorful plants.
The cost of labs and services gets some pushback, but it's always a worthwhile investment. Behavior change is huge— the most pushback comes not from giving up foods but from breaking out of a food rut, especially for those with a very short list of "safe foods."
I love every bit of it, especially when I help clients defy the odds of their health, expectations, or disease.
I love to help women feel better than they have in years, and restore hope and excitement about their health and what's possible.
I love learning and am always continuing my education and training, often with specific clients in mind to help them get better results. I enjoy sharing that knowledge by doing speaking events as well.
I love reading, cooking, yoga, being outdoors, traveling, and hanging out with my husband.
Sara Barthel is a licensed dietician, Certified Nutrition Specialist, Certified Gluten-free Practitioner, and Certified Functional Medicine Health Coach.
Sara specializes in addressing gut health issues on an individualized level by interpreting lab tests, applying functional medicine principles, and using the power of nutrition.
Learn more about Sara on her website and follow her on Instagram and Facebook @sarabethbarthel