Meet Maxine Edwards of Nutrition to the Max

Meet Maxine Edwards! Maxine is a registered dietitian with her own private practice, fittingly named, Nutrition to the Max. Her practice celebrates living life to the maximum. We at Healthie had the fortunate experience of chatting with Maxine to hear about her fascinating career path and what advice she has to share!

Tell us about your path to becoming a dietitian.

After spending over 20 years in the field of Computer Science, I was looking to do something that would really be helpful to others. Diabetes has impacted many of my love ones, my father, many in his family, and even my husband. So in my decision to make a career change, I wanted to be in a position to provide information for healthy living through healthier diets. Making informed eating decisions are an important part of healthy weight maintenance, preventing or delaying the complications of diabetes, reducing the risk of other chronic disease or managing chronic diseases, and promoting overall health. We all enjoy eating! We all can do better and sometimes, by making very simple changes, if we have correct nutrition information. When we know better, we can do better. Since I have always enjoyed cooking, baking and modifying recipes to make them healthier, becoming a dietitian was the choice for me. I returned to school, and in 2015 obtained a 2nd Bachelor’s degree in the Coordinated Program in Dietetics from Eastern Michigan University and became a Registered Dietitian in September, 2015.

Can you tell us about your nutrition career to date?

I started my first career in upstate New York after completing my 1st bachelor’s degree in Computer Science. My job relocated me to Michigan in 2000 where I worked as a Software Engineer focusing on project management until 2009. Since completing the Coordinated Program in Dietetics at Eastern Michigan University and becoming a Registered Dietitian, I have been busy establishing my private practice, Nutrition to the Max, LLC. While in school I was inspired to volunteer with Gleaners Community Food Bank of Southeaster Michigan’s Share Our Strength’s Cooking Matters program which I have continued. I love the program because it offers nutrition information to participants helping them make healthier choices and cook meals that are delicious, healthy and affordable which are exactly some of the reasons I pursued a career in dietetics.

Tell us all about your practice! What is your approach to care?

Nutrition to the Max, LLC offers individualized and group nutritional counseling and education, as well as, grocery store tours, recipe makeovers, and nutrition presentations. My mission is to empower individuals to live life to the maximum by providing nutritional counseling and education for sustainable dietary and lifestyle modifications. For convenience, virtual nutrition counseling is offered for those with busy schedules.

What advice do you have for dietetic students just graduating / completing their internships?

My advice to dietetic students just graduating or completing their internships is to continue to seek information in the area they are most interested in by staying active in the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics and the Dietetic Practice Groups that are related to their passion. They offer an abundance of information in starting your own business or just advancing your career. In addition, it’s important to network, network, network. You never know who you might meet that will provide you with new opportunities. Never lose sight of your dreams and goals.

How do you think technology is changing the way dietitians are practicing care?

Having a background in technology, I understand how things are changing and changing quickly. We have to be flexible and move with the changes. Providing care to individuals leading busy lives requires the ability to use new technologies to provide care that is easily accessible and secure. Telehealth and telenutrition are growing rapidly, and as secure platforms grow, I think more dietitians will provide these services.

Why are you excited about using Healthie?

I am really excited about using Healthie because of the secure platform that it provides that will allow my practice to offer virtual nutritional counseling to my clients via videoconferencing that meets HIPAA requirements. In addition, Healthie offers billing, scheduling and information that will be helpful in growing my business. It is exactly the platform I was looking for that will help grow my business and provide my clients with secure, excellent service.