Strengthening Communities: Trevor’s Path to Promoting Nutrition Equity
Trevor Hamlett, MPH, RDN, ACE-CPT
You are valuable. You are a unicorn out here. And know your worth for sure.
Q: We’re so grateful to have you as part of the DD community, can you share what Diversify Dietetics Programs you participated in/ how you’ve engaged with DD?
A: I remember attending a DD meetup in the 2019/2020 timeframe, which I believe was in Greensboro. I came to know about DD through students and dietitians of color who were already members of DD. For example, Adante, one of my closest friends and best man at my wedding, has been very involved with DD and spoke at the 2024 DD summit which I attended. I met Adante through another RD of color, Aurore, who was my research partner as I was applying to my Masters programs. Our principal investigator Dr. Carmen Samuel Hodge is a professor and RD of color, over at UNC Chapel Hill. I ended up attending UNC Chapel Hill’s MPH/RD program and each of my mentors and friends made sure I was supported just as DD and other mentors supported them.
Q: Why did (or why do) you want to become a nutrition professional (registered dietitian, registered dietetic technician, etc)?
A: I've been an ACE-certified personal trainer since 2016 and noticed that a lot of my clients were just making great strides in mobility and strength. However, a majority of my clients really wanted nutritional guidance and help with weight management. As a personal trainer, I recognized that I wasn't a nutrition expert at the time, and that it was out of my scope to give personalized nutrition-related information. I wasn't really comfortable with doing that either. I'm passionate that people are getting the most accurate, evidence-based information. This experience in addition to meeting Dr. Samuel Hodge at a community event that she was speaking at gave me the realization of “Oh, snap. This is, like, something I can actually do!” Seeing people like me doing great work in the field of nutrition, then going to the meetups, and then eventually, now the summit was really motivating both then and now! It has been so refreshing to see that there are a lot of people of color out here doing this work in a plethora of ways. We may not see each other as much, because, in the grand scheme of things, we are, we are few and far between but this is why DD is so important. Also, I worked for a YMCA in NC, where I did a little bit more than personal training, and was ultimately promoted to a director, and in these roles saw the positive impact that health and wellness can really have on people and the important role that nutrition plays in that. Especially going on, and just seeing the kind of information that was out there, and people's different opinions and how nutrient-centric people can be.I just kind of saw culture being lost. I saw, you know, it seemed like healthy eating is unattainable, or, you know, you know, maybe not economically feasible, and things like that. I wanted to see what's really going on and like, is there a workaround? Can we break and address these barriers, because health disparities and health equity are real things? I really want to close that equity gap and also help to eradicate some of those health disparities that are out there.
Q: Is there a person or group or activity/event you’ve been able to get connected to thanks to DD - what has that looked like and how has it impacted your personal or professional growth?
A: Definitely! Meeting Adante, I would kind of say, through DD, vicariously, in a sense, was huge. Also, attending the 2024 DD summit was really, really cool because it was like attending a DD meetup times ten! I met some great people at the meetups, but going to the summit this year allowed me to make a multitude of really awesome connections and some really good friends, people I could reach out to. For example, attending a session on writing recipes and learning tips about culturally relevant recipes was really insightful and practical for my current job. I remember talking to the presenter Breana Killeen because during that time, we were shifting to a new cardiac rehab program that was going to require me to teach recipes, do cooking demos, etc. and her presentation really helped me perform my job in a culturally sensitive way.
Q: How did you feel after finding the DD community?/ Did anything change once you got connected with DD?
A: After attending the summit it was very timely to attend the summit. I'd seen Adante, give a bunch of talks, and as I saw him prepare for the DD Summit, I was inspired to speak at the next summit myself. I got a little intimidated when I saw how awesome everyone's presentations were. Shortly after the summit I actually got asked to speak at a retreat, in September where I'm gonna be speaking on nutrition, fitness, and goal setting. By the end, I mustered up the courage to go up and talk to the presenters to get advice, and network which was really encouraging. I felt like if I needed to, I could reach out to them for whatever I needed. So I really felt hopeful. I felt supported, and then enthusiastic too. Oftentimes at other nutrition continuing education events I wonder “Where are the people of color at?”. To realize we're out here, and we have our own thing; it was just so incredible to see that many RDs of color, you know, with similar interests.
Q: Do you have any advice to share for others who may be struggling on this journey?
A: First things first, don't go through this journey alone, because it can look really, really lonely out there. Seek resources. Becoming a member of DD is a great start, from the meetups to the mentorship program, to the summits. There's so much offered, through organizations like DD. I had to connect with the right people and learn about these organizations but I think that that's super important and well worth it in the long run.
I would also say on a second note one of the things that was so important for me, to get off on the right foot, was people telling me to look for financial support, look for social support and that I don't have to, just go through this journey alone and bear all these financial burdens. There are resources out there for you. You are valuable. You are a unicorn out here. And know your worth for sure. That was something that was, that was told to me by, numerous mentors and dietitians of color, many who were involved with DD. That has really stuck with me, because there were definitely times where, I felt imposter syndrome, or, I felt like, like I just have to pay RD these fees, or there's no other way to do this. And it's like, no, that's that's not the case. Like, if you really sell yourself and you really do what you need to do, there's a lot of resources out there to help you.
Q: What would the field of nutrition & dietetics look like if we were to reshape it?
A: Yeah, a lot more diverse. I'll tell you that. It’s that's something that really gets at me. Especially as we talk about compensation, it's tough. I was talking to one of my co-workers about this and the gender inequities that we see in pay in our field which are majority female. We feel the effects of that as well, which I don't think is fair. And I think ultimately, from a public health, national, and global standpoint, I would like to see much more emphasis placed on the importance of nutrition, wellness, and making sure nutrition and nutrition education is accessible to as many people as possible. And with that, I see there being, more equitable pay for the important and various work dietitians do. I believe that proper compensation will play a big role in incentivizing more people of color to pursue a career as a dietitian. When you think about other careers, like being a PA or going to PT school and things like that, you have to be competitive when it comes to compensation. I sometimes find it difficult to advise a person of color, especially a young person of color, to be in nutrition if they’re pursuing a job and a top priority pay. It's not like it wouldn't necessarily be for the compensation, but it's for the impact that you can do in the field of nutrition. And the ability to, you know, really just solely focus on that versus a plethora of other things. My hope is that ultimately, as a profession we will be as valued from a compensation perspective as some of the other health professions.