MAXWELL AIR FORCE BASE, Ala. -- Farren Montana Otwell, 42nd Medical Group registered dietitian, offers individualized counseling for general health weight issues and chronic health conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure and high cholesterol.
“We are very excited to have her. She takes her time with each patient and explains what nutrition is and how their body functions,” said Lt. Col. Patricia Rohrbeck, 42nd MDG Public Health flight commander. “You can exercise all day long but if you don’t eat right and you don’t fuel your body, you will never reach peak performance. Nutrition is a cornerstone of a healthy life and well-being.”
Otwell graduated from the University of Alabama and became a registered and licensed dietitian in 2022. Having completed her internship at local facilities, she was aware of the challenges of the people living in the area and what they face in terms of accessibility to healthy eating and those who suffer from chronic health conditions.
Otwell’s passion has always been to help people, and she decided to pursue her career in nutrition because of her own chronic health condition. She was interested in more holistic and integrative nutrition approaches for her own health and wellness, which led her wanting to be able to help other people heal their bodies through food. Because of her own health experience, she feels able to empathize with her patients, making them feel heard knowing that she understands their struggles.
“Having a balanced nutritional intake is important, not only to provide the body with the fuel that it needs but also provide essential nutrients needed to keep functioning at its best,” said Otwell. “Benefits of good nutrition are disease prevention, improved immune function, healthy growth and development. Weight management, mental well-being, healthy hair, skin, nails; strong bones and teeth as well as improvement in energy levels.”
The military community needs to be to always ready for the mission. It is of great importance to be able to reach maximum physical performance and be in shape to fight and being able to perform at their best and maintain a good health is impossible without proper nutrition.
“The key to staying in shape is to fuel the body with the right amount and type of nutritious foods,” Otwell said. “Airmen need to learn to power their performance with good nutrition. With our high deployment tempo, effective nutritional strategies will optimize performance during operations and preserve health.”
During the evaluations, Otwell performs a InBody scan test to her patients to monitor their dietary progress. This device provides non-invasive body composition analysis that measure muscle mass, fat and water levels, allowing patients to know how much muscle they gained while reducing body fat. The InBody also measures the basal metabolic rate (BMR), which is the minimum calories the patient needs to consume to function, and the scan is conducted in less than five minutes.
Otwell is familiar with different types of diets, like the mediterranean diet which is the most beneficial and healthy and has shown to reduce cardiovascular disease, cancer risk, inflammation and improve brain and gut health. The Mediterranean diet is low in red meat, sugar, saturated fat and encourages the consumption of vegetables, fruits, whole grains, lean proteins and healthy fats such as olive oil, avocados and nuts.
Many people turn to medications to lose weight, whether to meet aesthetic standards, stay in shape, or simply trying to maintain a healthier life. However, these medications are not always the healthiest option. Many of these medications can have unwanted side effects and are not really addressing the true causes of being overweight, such as unhealthy eating habits or lack of physical activity.
“Too many people see weight loss medications as a magic solution and nutrition and physical activity are key component of weight loss that needs to be addressed even while taking medications,” said Otwell. “If someone comes to me and tells me that they want to lose weight, they’re really telling me they want to lose fat. Not many people realize that there is a significant percentage of weight lost on weight loss medication that’s their muscle mass.”
The counseling and what Otwell teaches is not just about dieting, it is about making healthy lifestyle changes that last for the rest of your life. She points out that the problem with diets is that they are always something people see as a short-term solution and a way of eating to lose weight. Eventually they stop eating after reaching their weight goal or simply give up because it is too restrictive.
“By learning how to make healthy lifestyle changes and learning more about what our body needs, we can maintain these habits long term, so we don’t have the roller coaster weight effect,” said Otwell.
Those interested in schedule an appointment with Otwell can call the appointment line 334-953-3368 and can be attended without referral.