Kirsten Oilund has always loved food.
“I always wanted to do something with food, but I’m not an expert chef or anything like that,” Oilund said. “I also always knew I wanted to do something science based.”
Combining her two passions, Oilund obtained a bachelor of science in nutrition and food science, allowing her to become a registered dietitian.
“I’m a foodie at heart so I was happy to blend my two loves.”
After working as a dietitian for four years in her hometown of Grand Prairie, Oilund started itching for a change. Last year she packed up all her stuff and made the move to Jasper, scoring a dietitian position in town with Alberta Health Services.
“I grew up in Grand Prairie, but I was only there about half the time because my dad always had us camping and skiing, mostly in the Rockies,” Oilund said. “So those are all the activities I ended up loving as an adult and I knew Jasper would allow me to continue to live the kind of lifestyle that I wanted.”
Through her Alberta Health Services position, Oilund mostly treats patients with chronic diseases like diabetes and crohn’s. However, being an active lady and dietitian, Oilund said she couldn’t help but notice that Jasper was lacking health and wellness services for the town’s sport-driven people.
“Where I work we just really don’t have the capacity to see people that don’t really need medical management,” said Oilund.
Recently she decided to take matters into her own hands, opening up her own practice called Jasper Nutrition Counselling, with a special emphasis on sport and wellness.
“It’s a perfect fit for the town so I was surprised that no one had tapped into this niche,” said Oilund, adding that sporting dietitians are usually difficult to find unless you live in a big city. “It’s a big area for the people of Jasper and I’m really excited to move forward with this and help people meet their wellness goals.”
For those who aren’t dominating 24-hour races or participating in other extreme sports, Oilund said a trip to the dietitian can still be beneficial.
“During a session there’s a lot of focus on education and goal setting and what will really work with what you need. So it can be someone who likes the casual hike or somebody who doesn’t—it can be someone who just wants to learn about meal planning or feeding their toddler who’s a picky eater,” Oilund said. “I work with people who just want to learn how to eat better.”
A few of Oilund’s other areas of expertise include mindful eating, weight management and vegan/vegetarian eating.
“It’s really a one-on-one kind of thing. It really depends what you’re coming to see me for,” Oilund said. “So we’ll talk about that during the initial session and then I email all your goals and recipes and other important things.”
Before each patient’s initial session, Oilund has her clients fill out an online form so she already has an idea of each person’s goals before they even step foot in her office.
Her office is located at 707 Geikie St. For more information check out www.jasper-nutrition.com.
“If you give healthy living and eating a bit of time then you’ll never go back,”Oilund said.
Kayla Byrne [email protected]
