The NatureDoc Approach

Welcome to NatureDoc Clinic!

We are a close-knit team of UK-wide Nutritional Therapists,  Naturopaths and Nutrition Coaches who all follow an evidence-based Functional Medicine approach to nutrition and wellness. 

We specialise in nutrition and lifestyle support for women’s health and hormones, paediatrics (babies, children, teens and young adults) as well as chronic gastrointestinal, neurological, inflammatory and autoimmune support for all genders and ages. We also have a clinical team with a primary interest in neurodiversity and mental health for both adults and children. 

All our practitioners have trained in nutrition and/or naturopathy for at least three years and obtained a diploma or BSc at a reputable UK college prior to joining the NatureDoc team. Some of the team have also obtained an MSc in nutrition as well as holding other nutrition-related qualifications. 

Lucinda Miller is the clinical lead of NatureDoc and her hand-picked practitioner team all follow her mentoring programme for their first 18 months at NatureDoc. After that they also attend weekly team mentoring sessions as well as attend other CPD training events to ensure that all our lovely clients receive the best quality care and continuity from everyone in the team. The continuing education and collaborative learning from each other means that our knowledge is always up to date and relevant. 

We are extremely proud of the calibre and empathy of all our practitioners and the quality of care they deliver.  

The Booking Process
Consultation bookings and pricing enquiries can be made through our telephone booking team on 020 3397 1824, who are there to make simple phone bookings 6 days a week.  8am-7pm Monday to Friday and 8.30am-5pm on Saturdays. 

If you have more in-depth questions, need to discuss which practitioner to book in with or chat about the logistics of your consultation, then it is best to email our reception team via [email protected] who can then either email you back or arrange a call back to talk  things through. They are available during normal working hours Monday to Friday. 

Our receptionists can only provide an estimated cost of consultations, lab tests and supplements as this will vary considerably from person to person. Each practitioner charges their own hourly consultation rates, depending on experience and location and our booking team or reception team can advise on their current consultation fees for both initial and follow up consultations. 

Expect the first initial consultation to last for 1.5 hours (90 minutes) per person (60 minutes for babies under 12 months). Follow ups tend to be 60 minutes for the first one around 6 weeks later, and then 30 or 45 minutes thereafter as needed.  Very occasionally some acute/less complex cases may only require 60 minutes, but that depends on the complexity of the health history and condition, as well as the discretion of the practitioner at the time of the consultation.

In person clinics are located as follows: 

– Berkshire: Bradfield, Highclere and Headley

– Cheshire: Knutsford

– Leicestershire: Loughborough

– London: Sloane Square, Chelsea and Parsons Green, Fulham

– Oxfordshire: Wallingford

– Somerset: Bath

– Surrey: Godalming 

– Wiltshire:  Tidworth and Newton Toney 

All the other practitioners are currently offering virtual video consultations only, and are based in:

Tiverton, Devon; Dublin, Ireland; Leicestershire; Northamptonshire; Camberwell, Richmond and Southfields in London; Shrewsbury, Shropshire; Witney, West Oxfordshire; and Chichester and Horsham in West Sussex 

We will always need to meet you face to face or via video link at some point during an initial consultation (even small babies and young children need to be present for at least 5-10 minutes). This is usually best achieved by a physical in-clinic face to face consultation. However, sometimes that just isn’t possible or sensible. For example, you may find it difficult to travel, due to distance or disability or even school commitments. This is why we run a very busy virtual clinic via our secure video-link system. 

We aim to prevent children from missing out on their education as much as possible, so please arrange for another adult to pop them back into school/take them home once we have met them briefly at the start of the initial consultation.  They do not need to attend the follow ups. 

Due to Covid restrictions over the past two years, the majority of our consultations have been delivered virtually through our secure video telehealth system and most people continue to prefer this option, especially for children’s consultations. A video consultation is often much more accessible and flexible and is especially helpful for follow-ups. 

Preparing For The Appointment
You will be sent email confirmation at the time of booking your appointment with a link to an online health history questionnaire. Please allow plenty of time to compete this questionnaire as it also includes diet, medication and supplement details which are very important to know prior to the appointment to prepare properly.  With the food supplement list please state which brand, dosage and how long you have been taking it, as well as the generic name. 

You will also be asked to upload any pdf copies of past laboratory testing and reports from educational or medical specialists if you have them. 

We also need a portrait photograph of the client for our records. Video footage of any specific behaviours in children is also very useful.

It is very important to complete the online health history questionnaire well in advance of your consultation and to provide as much detail as you can. This includes the key diet and supplement/medication sections. Timely completion of the health history means that your practitioner can prepare properly for the consultation and that the duration of the consultation is used optimally to provide well thought through nutritional interventions.

You will be sent a reminder email and a text message in the days running up to your appointment. If you do need to cancel or postpone your appointment for any reason, please give us as much warning as possible, as we run long waiting lists and many of our team have their own childcare costs and clinic rent to take into consideration. THANK YOU! 

Typical Consultation Structure
The initial consultation will involve an in-depth discussion about you or your child’s health history (including family medical history), diet and lifestyle with the aim to pinpoint any specific triggers or indicators over a 90 minute consultation. 

There will also sometimes be a health and development check which may include: iridology, tongue analysis, nail analysis, and abdominal check as well as a review of any recent laboratory testing.  These physical tests vary depending on the person’s age and presentation as well as if the consultation is face to face or virtual.  We have become very adept at finding ways over the screen to achieve carrying out some of the physical tests. 

We will also provide insight on any blood test results or other lab work you have already sent over from a functional medicine perspective.  You will also have a chance to ask specific questions about you or your child and it is good to prepare these in advance. 

During the consultation your practitioner will gather up lots of information from you, and from this discussion will make a decision on any diet or lifestyle changes, food supplements to be taken or lab tests to be carried out which they will share with you and explain how to implement these easily. 

After The Initial Consultation 
We will send an individualised health plan via email within a week of the first consultation with details of further laboratory testing and any diet or food supplement changes to be made before the first follow up. 

This health plan report is very individual and ties together all the strands of our conversation during the consultation and can take between one and four hours to write up depending on the complexity of the case. This health plan writing time and time taken to order up the lab tests is included in the first initial consultation fee. 

This health plan report will give you full instructions of specific diet and lifestyle changes, exactly which food supplements to take (and how to buy them) as well as information on how to carry out the lab tests. 

Laboratory Test Information
Further diagnostic testing may include tests via the following labs: The Doctors Laboratory, Medichecks, Genova Diagnostics, Invivo Healthcare, Cyrex Laboratory, Great Plains Laboratory,  Lifecode Gx, MTHFR Genetics, Viva Health, Bio-Diagnostics, Biovis and Doctor’s Data. We also use other labs on an ad-hoc basis. 

These include tests for: 

– blood haematology and biochemistry

– vitamin and mineral profiles to include Vitamin D, ferritin, folate, B12, magnesium, copper, zinc and ceruloplasmin

– full thyroid screen: TSH, T4, T3, Reverse T3 and Thyroid Antibodies 

– hormones (adrenal profile, oestrogen, testosterone, progesterone) including the DUTCH test

– comprehensive stool analysis and gut microbiome testing (yeast /candida, bacteria, viruses and amoebic parasites) 

– overgrowth of small intestine bacteria (SIBO)

– food and environmental allergy (IgE) and food intolerances  (IgG)

– histamine intolerance and mast cell activation indicators

– urinary mycotoxin test

– urinary environmental toxin test 

– hair mineral analysis (for a heavy metal toxicity and a trace mineral check)

– gluten and casein urinary peptides

– genetic polymorphisms (SNPs)

– neurotransmitters (dopamine, serotonin, epinephrine, norepinephrine, acetylcholine, GABA, glutamate)

– pyroluria/ kryptopyrrole

– oxalates

– viral and bacterial antibody titres

We may also recommend other simple at-home tests suggested, including basal temperature testing and stomach acid assessments. 

The UK-wide protocol for our profession is that we cannot order any laboratory tests up ahead of the first initial consultation and a very important part of the first consultation is assessing which tests are needed to be carried out. 

We do not carry out any laboratory testing or phlebotomy at our own clinics. The laboratory tests will be ordered and the kits sent home for you to carry out at your convenience. These tend to be stool, urine, saliva and hair tests. If a blood test is required, we will advise on phlebotomy services close to your home or even a home visit. 

Full instructions for payment, specimen taking and returns will accompany each test and it is important to read these in full prior to testing. It is your responsibility to pay for the tests, collect the samples and courier/post these back to the laboratories. 

Your Results Follow-Up
Test results usually take between 10 working days and 6 weeks to turn around. A follow-up results consultation to analyse these results will therefore be 4-6 weeks after the initial consultation and will probably last one hour. During this consultation your practitioner will provide a full and comprehensive interpretation of your results and will share action points on how to rebalance any out-of-sync markers.

We will then put together a second health plan which may incorporate more tailored dietary interventions, lifestyle and exercise changes, herbal remedies and a food supplement regime. This is very personalised and can take a few hours to write up, so it may not be sent to you for a few days, and on busy clinic weeks or in more complex cases this can take up to a week.

Consequent Follow Ups
Follow-up consultations after that will be every 6 weeks–3 months thereafter and will range from 30-60 minutes depending on the complexity of the person’s situation. Supplement lists and dietary interventions will be updated and reviewed with each follow-up.  You can request to have these more frequently if you prefer. 

All follow up consultations are chargeable pro rata at your practitioners hourly rate.

In Between Consultations
We are more than happy for you to email 1-2 brief questions pertinent to your current health plan in between consultations, especially if this means you cannot progress without further clarification e.g. a supplement is out of stock, or a lab test needs to be re-ordered.  We will try to reply to emails like this within 2-3 days. 

Please respect your practitioners time and please store up all other questions for the next follow up.

Payment
Payment is always made at the time of the appointment with a credit/debit card (no American Express please) via the practitioner’s payment terminal. Cash can be used for in-person consultations only. Please always remember to have your payment card to hand at the time of the appointment, as this can delay the start of the next appointment quite considerably.

All laboratory testing is charged in addition to the initial appointment fee. In most cases these are paid directly to the laboratory when the test kits are ordered, but some do need to be paid for at the time of the appointment. 

Food supplements are also an additional cost. A link to purchase each supplement suggested will be sent in the health plan. Many supplements can be purchased and dispensed through NatureDoc.Shop and we offer a special NatureDoc discount to registered clinic clients.

Frequently Asked Booking Questions