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Assistant Professor and Registered Dietitian Theresa DeLorenzo brings experience in private practice and sports performance to national media outlets and Russell Sage’s Nutrition Science degree programs.
Egg McMuffins. Cholesterol. Summer eating. Chia seeds or flax seeds? Digestion.
These are just some of the topics that Russell Sage College Assistant Professor of Nutrition Theresa DeLorenzo, DCN, RD, has addressed recently for Chowhound, Women’s World, Real Simple, Eating Well, Parade, Verywell Health, and other national media outlets.
Her media presence is the result of a workshop she joined this summer, designed to help dietitians communicate their expertise to journalists.
“My primary reason for joining the training is there is so much misinformation in social media and everywhere about health and nutrition that it makes my brain want to explode,” said DeLorenzo. She’s eager to be a reliable resource for journalists so that science-backed advice reaches wider audiences.
Body dysmorphia, athletic performance, and women’s health are other topics that DeLorenzo addresses regularly in the media or in her private practice, Nutrition for Optimal Performance.
This range of roles in the nutrition field — she’s also been a NICU dietitian — helps DeLorenzo create a richer learning experience for students in the nutrition degree programs at Russell Sage.
“I’m not just standing in the classroom, I’m also in the field doing it,” she said, describing how she’ll share questions from journalists or clients in the classroom. “I say, this happened, what would you do? Or, here’s what I did, and here was the outcome.”
To give her students real-world practice in nutrition communication, DeLorenzo featured her graduate Nutrition Counseling class on a recent episode of her Food 4 Thought podcast. Titled Social Media or Six Years of Education, the episode explored the distinction between Registered Dietitians and nutritionists (Registered Dietitian is a regulated credential denoting advanced education and professional experience.)
She offers nutrition majors and graduate students opportunities to get additional experiences with nutrition-related communication, menu planning, and event logistics at retreats that Nutrition for Optimal Performance hosts. While students don’t provide direct counseling, observing real-world interactions gives them early professional insight into client care.
DeLorenzo also teaches a science elective for non-nutrition majors which, like her media outreach, gives her another platform to share evidence-backed nutritional guidance with a broader audience.
“In those classes, I emphasize making sure, when you’re viewing things on social media, you’re aware of where the information is coming from,” she said. Companies advertise expensive supplements, peptides, collagen, and creatine when “We can get all of these things by just eating food.”
As the 2026-2027 academic year gets underway, DeLorenzo is taking on the department’s sports nutrition coursework.
“I’m excited to add the sports nutrition classes because I live that,” she said of bringing her experiences training for her 10th marathon, counseling athletes at Nutrition for Optimal Performance, and working with Russell Sage’s athletics department into the classroom.
“People don’t realize how foundational nutrition is to doing their sport,” she continued, noting how even dedicated athletes see noticeable gains when they fine-tune their food choices. “They start to improve their nutrition, and it helps so much. That’s cool to see, so I’m excited to teach that.”