Pallas Care’s USC Leonard Davis School of Gerontology interns, Yanyi and Yueran, recently interviewed nutritionist Sophie Hung about her A Healthier You Journey program. Pallas Care believes that a balanced and complete diet has great potential to enhance the wellness of our clients, employees, and their friends and families. Sophie’s focus on working with first-generation immigrant communities aligns with Pallas Care’s mission to provide tailored, culturally competent care to our clients.
Sophie Hung is a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist and has been guiding clients for over 13 years. She received her undergraduate degree from UCLA and her Masters of Public Health Nutrition from Loma Linda University. Moreover, she is a Certified Personal Trainer, an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, and a Pilates Instructor. Sophie grew up in Hong Kong and has studied in Spain, Mexico, Peru and Argentina. In additional to English, Sophie also speaks Cantonese, Mandarin and Spanish. As a Registered Nutritionist and Certified Personal Trainer, she has helped hundreds of clients lose weight, build muscle, control blood sugar, blood pressure, cholesterol, triglycerides, prevent dialysis, and plan balanced vegetarian meals. We were lucky to meet Sophie Hung recently and interview her.
Pallas Care: Why did you decide to become a Registered Dietitian Nutritionist? What is your story?
Sophie: My grandmother was bedridden for the last 10 years of her life after having a stroke and lost function for half of her body. All my relatives on my dad’s side have diabetes, and one time my uncle told me that he needed to take a cocktail of pills every morning and had no appetite for breakfast afterward. I was a little overwhelmed when I first learned about all my family medical history. However, instead of focusing on things that I can’t change such as genetics, I try to focus on things that I can control, such as nutrition, exercise, and stress management. That’s why I decided to study nutrition and fitness so that I can help anyone who is interested in taking control of their health.
Pallas Care: Can you give us a brief overview of your programs and whom you serve?
Sophie: I have a program called “A Healthier You Journey”, which is for one-on-one coaching, since healthy is a journey not a destination. I specialize in helping Asian individuals with Diabetes, high cholesterol, weight management, and other conditions. I worked with a lot of Asian busy professionals and their parents. When they first came to this country, they hustled and worked very hard and neglected their health so that their family and the kids can receive good education and career opportunities. Now that their children are grown and have good career, they noticed that a lot of health problems have slowly emerged. Even some of my client’s children are physicians or healthcare professionals, the clients don’t listen to their own children, so their children reached out to me to coach their parents. Since I speak their language and grew up in Asia, I understand their cultural food and mindset. I can relate to them a lot and recommend food that they are used to.
Besides one-on-one coaching, I also have another program called A Healthier Business, which is for Corporate Wellness. I offered live in-person or virtual nutrition and fitness class, and I have an on-demand library which gives unlimited access to employees from different businesses to get those information anytime. I also attend health fairs, conduct team building, or staff wellness retreat.
Pallas Care: Can you share an example of a typical client?
Sophie: I recently helped a diabetic patient whose HgbA1C was over 10 (normal level is below 6.5). Her daughter reached out to me and hoped that I could help her mom. Her doctor told her not to eat any carbohydrates such as rice and noodle. She felt lost and helpless because those two are the staple foods for an Asian diet. She felt hungry all the time but was scared to eat since she wasn’t sure which food spiked her blood sugar. I assured her that she can still eat rice and noodle, but it is important to choose the right type of carb, the portion, and has the correct combination of food groups. In 3 months, she was able to lower her HgbA1c from 10 back down to 6.4, and she felt satisfied from her meals. I was super proud of her.
Pallas Care: That’s great! What’s the process like if someone is interested in joining your program?
Sophie: I usually have interested clients filled out an application to learn more about their goals, challenges, and commitment level. Then we will schedule a FREE discovery call to understand a little bit more about their situation and I would explain to them how my program solve their problems. Once they decided to join the program, I conduct very thorough initial assessment to review their bloodwork, understand their health background, and learn about their current eating habits and lifestyle. My program not only provides the WHAT (the knowledge), but also the HOW (practical tips & behavior change strategies) to develop healthy sustainable habits. We also develop a personalized meal plan together, come up with goals, and follow up with them weekly or biweekly to keep them accountable. Besides nutrition, I also incorporate fitness or strength training to help them increase their metabolism and maintain/increase their lean body mass.
Pallas Care: What are the partnership opportunities for Pallas Care and A Healthier You Journey?
Sophie: We both have clients who are Chinese Americans. I can help Pallas Care’s home care clients with dietary and fitness guidance. Clients with medical conditions such as diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, chronic kidney disease, overweight or obesity, etc., might need to follow a special diet and stay active. I can empower the clients, their families, and Pallas Care’s caregivers with the knowledge of what type of foods to buy, places to shop, seasonings to add, how to make it appetizing, and encourage to exercise without injuring themselves.
Pallas Care: As an experienced Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, what health tips would you like to share?
Sophie: I would call myself a plant-based flexitarian. I try to eat meat only once a week and red meat once a month. I eat a lot of plant based proteins such as organic tofu, edamame, fava tofu, Pumfu (pumpkin seed tofu), lentils, tempeh, etc., along with eggs and seafood. When it comes to cooking utensils or containers, I try to avoid plastic as much as possible, and use mostly silicone, glass, and stainless steel ones. In terms of cooking methods, I recommend using low heat and not too much water when cooking, as the nutrients can be lost in the water if they don’t drink the water as well. Stir-frying, steaming, and baking are the healthier cooking methods. I tried to eat small frequent meals (every 3-4 hours) to optimize blood sugar. I tried to choose organic, wild caught seafood, grass fed and high quality animal proteins (when I do consume meat) as much as possible. Besides nutrition, I try to stay active with yoga, Pilates, strength training, Zumba, and spending time outdoors. I wear Zinc Oxide mineral sunscreen with at least 50 SPF every time I go outside to protect my skin. I work on mindful breathing on a regular basis to manage my stress.
Check out A Healthier You Journey’s website for other nutrition and wellness advice and tools: https://ahealthieryoujourney.com/