This week on the blog, I interviewed Elly Mobilia, a nutritionist specialising in genetic and DNA testing. In this article, we go into exactly what DNA testing is and how it can help your health through ditching the guesswork and getting to the root cause of what you're struggling with. I very much enjoyed learning from Elly, and I hope you enjoy this read xx
Firstly, Introduce yourself! Who are you, what do you do, and what are your passions?
Hello! I am Elly I’m a clinical nutritionist and I work at a clinic called iDNA Health in Stirling, Western Australia. I specialise in genetics because I believe it is absolutely ground-breaking when it comes to finding the root cause of your health issues, and personalised health, specifically personalised nutrition and food intolerance testing.
My main specialities is food intolerances, gut health, autoimmune disease and skin health. I have enjoyed working with skin health so much, that I have been studying my second degree in dermal therapy so I can help more patients with their skin struggles. I graduate hopefully by early 2023. My passion is definitely helping people feel amazing! I love seeing the positive change in a patient when they finally know what to do for their health and then see the benefits. It is so rewarding. Outside of work, I love to create recipes, I grew up a dancer and still do weekly classes, I love pottery, coastal walks and having a good old margarita with my girlfriends!
What sparked your interest and love for all things health and nutrition?
I think growing up in an Italian household, I was always around good food. I enjoyed watching my mum and nonna cook, I loved playing sport, I was very sporty growing up so have always liked being active and a foodie. I first heard of a nutritionist when I was 11, because my mum brought home a CSRIO healthy eating book and it was created by health professionals, including nutritionists. I thought it would be a cool job to teach people how to be healthier and prevent diseases, so that is exactly what I did!
Tell us a bit about what your work and page is all about. What exactly is DNA and genetic testing, and how do you work with your client's health through these tests?
When I worked in general nutrition, there was always a sense of guess work, trial and error and elimination diets until we found what helped or what the trigger was, and it can be very frustrating for both the client and I. Genetic testing for food intolerance is very different to a blood test for food allergies because, blood changes depending on our state of inflammation, our environment and what we eat, our DNA never changes, no matter what we eat. I screen for many things, from food intolerance to Breast cancer risk, Alzheimer’s risk to your dominant muscle fibre, it just comes down to what my client wants to know. People usually come to see me because they want to feel better, they are suffering with a health issue or certain symptoms that they cannot pinpoint. I will usually have an initial 30 min consult with the patient either online or in person, where we discuss their health priorities, or any presenting complaints they have in detail, and then I’ll explain the whole DNA process, meaning what DNA reports will be the best fit for them, how the DNA saliva swab works and so on. Once I have the DNA results, I can formulate a personalised treatment plan.
What inspired you to take the genetic and DNA route of Nutrition? How did you discover/get into it?
While I was in my last couple years in my degree, I was working in a dietetics clinic and I realised I wanted to prevent health issues and get to the root cause of mainly gut issues, rather than just treating them. I was looking at going back to university to become an immunologist to use blood tests for allergy testing. Around the same time, I was considering this, my family friend was one of the first patients at the brand new IDNA Health, and she told me all about her experience and how great it was. I thought “wow this is exactly what I want to do!” I sent an email to IDNA Health, CEO Sharon Palmer straight away to ask for work experience. Sharon liked my initiative and offered me an interview. I was offered an internship to learn clinical genetics over 6 months, and I became IDNA Health’s first practitioner. Fast forward to now, we have been going for 3 years, I am clinical coordinator, we have a second clinic, more staff and have helped hundreds of people. I am so thankful and am happy I worked so hard and didn’t stop until I found my passion.
What kind of health issues do you help your clients work through, and why do you think DNA testing is an effective way of doing so?
Mainly IBS, IBD, autoimmune, acne, eczema, irregular cycles and fatigue. DNA testing is the best way to know what works for YOU. There is no guesswork involved. It is a great tool to find out what is triggering the symptoms, rather than try band aid solutions, we can target the root cause.
Who would you recommend to get onto DNA testing to improve their health?
Everyone! Literally every single person would benefit. It is not just for those who feel unwell, sick of guessing, sick of spending money on quick fixes etc, it is also for everyone to fully understand what works for their body, so they can prevent diseases and symptoms that may occur later in life due to intolerances or issues they never even knew they had. Why wouldn’t you want to know what works best for your body to obtain optimal health?
What does the average day on your food plate look like?
It changes! I am very intuitive and go with whatever I feel like that week or day. I struggle to eat the same things every day, so I switch it up a lot. I have a cow milk allergy and a fructose intolerance so I steer clear from them, but luckily, I can eat all the gluten!
At the moment my food plate looks like:
Breakfast: Overnight oats with berries, vegan protein powder, almond milk, prebiotics, chia seeds and dairy free choc chips.
Snack: Banana and a Roobois tea
Lunch: Tofu puffs in a miso and beef bone broth, noodles, bok choy
Snack: Seeded protein bar
Dinner: Salmon, rice and lots of vegetables
After dinner I like having some chocolate or a Roobois tea.
What are your favourite AM and PM rituals to begin and end your day the right way?
I start every morning with a daily affirmation, I like to go for a walk if the weather is nice before work, and I do my skincare, make a yummy breakfast and head to work. My PM routine is usually a workout or dance class, skincare, cook dinner, do some client prep for the next day and fill out my gratitude journal.
Where do you see yourself and your work in the future?
We will be BIG! DNA testing will be available for everyone around the world, and I will be using nutrition, genetics, and dermal therapy in practice which no one else is doing currently or has done before. That makes me excited for the future!
What would your advice be to someone who wants to improve their overall wellness?
Start small, don’t rush it. It all comes together eventually.
Start off by dong some exercise you enjoy like dance classes, join hiking groups, Zumba classes, gym, run club, swimming, a social sport- whatever you enjoy. If you enjoy it you will stick to it!
Perhaps try a meal service like EasyFit meals, Marley Spoon, Every Plate or Dinnerly to get you into cooking healthier meals without the added stress.
Start daily affirmations when you wake up to set yourself up for a positive day.
Finally, where can we find you on social media?
You can find me on Instagram at @nutritionby_elly or via the IDNA Health Website www.idnahealth.com.au or the IDNA Health Instagram @idnahealth
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