Registered Dietitian · CA VA AZ CO · Virtual & In-Person

Restore energy.
Rebuild your gut.
Age with strength.

I'm Andrea — a Board-Certified RDN and Former U.S. Army Officer with Extensive Clinical Training. I Help Adults Restore Energy, Improve Digestion, Harmonize Hormones, Optimize Metabolism, Stabilize Disordered Food Relationships and Age With Strength Through My P3F Method.

5-star rated on Google · San Diego Root-Cause Nutrition
Weight Management Post-GLP1 Mgmt Food Intolerance Gut Health Nutrition SIBO IBS IBD Nutritional Psychiatry Culinary Medicine Evidence-Based Data-Driven Metrics
Andrea Zajac, RDN — San Diego Root-Cause Dietitian
🎖️
Walter Reed Army Medical Center Trained

Insurance Accepted

United Healthcare Aetna
The Science of Weight & Metabolism

It's not your willpower.
It's your hormonal signaling.

If you've tried every diet, done everything "right," and still can't lose weight — your body isn't broken and you're not weak. Research shows that persistent weight gain is far more often a hormonal communication problem than a discipline problem.

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Insulin Resistance

Your cells stop listening

When insulin is chronically elevated — often from diet, stress, or sleep disruption — your cells gradually stop responding to its signals. Your body keeps storing fat even when you're eating less, because the communication system itself is impaired.

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Leptin & GLP-1

Your brain can't hear "I'm full"

Leptin is the hormone that tells your brain you have enough stored energy. When leptin resistance develops, your brain genuinely believes you're starving — even with excess body fat. This drives hunger that no amount of willpower can override long-term.

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Metabolic Rate

Your metabolism downshifts

Chronic dieting and hormonal disruption can suppress thyroid function and slow your basal metabolic rate — meaning your body burns fewer calories at rest. This is not a character flaw. It's your body's survival adaptation, and it's measurable.

❌ The Old Story

"You just need to eat less and move more. It's a simple calories-in, calories-out equation. If you're not losing weight, you're not trying hard enough."

✓ What the Science Actually Shows

Hormones control where calories go. When insulin is elevated, fat cells are locked in storage mode regardless of caloric intake. Fixing the hormonal signal — not just cutting calories — is what creates lasting metabolic change.

Curious which hormonal patterns might be affecting you? Use the tool below to explore the connections — then let's look at your specific picture together.

Explore Your Connections ↓
Sound familiar?

You Know Something Is Wrong — But You're Told Otherwise.

You eat well. You exercise. You're doing everything right! But you're exhausted, bloated, gaining weight that you can't lose, and feeling like a stranger in your own body. And every time you ask for answers, you are told to "eat less & exercise more".

"Patients today are tired of being told their labs show nothing wrong, maybe it's in their heads, and they should consider eating less and exercising more- or worse- told to take more meds! I use food-as-medicine to heal the body."

— Andrea Zajac, RDN

Andrea helps bridge the gap between your lab results and actionable health insights — partnering with you to understand the data and take meaningful action. Functional nutrition doesn't wait for disease. It finds the problems while there's still time to fix them.

  • Fatigue That Sleep Doesn't Fix
  • Weight Loss Resistance Despite Real Effort
  • Aches, Pains & Illness Despite Being "Healthy"
  • Declining Vitality, Drive, and Mental Acuity
  • Hormonal Shifts — Thyroid, Adrenals, GLP1, Estrogen, Testosterone
  • Digestive Issues: Constipation, Bloating, IBS, Reflux
  • Blood Sugar Swings, Metabolic Slowdown
  • Brain Fog, Anxiety, Depression
  • Menstrual Issues & Vaginal Infections
  • Acne, Hair Loss, & Absorptive Malnutrition

With My Food-As-Medicine Approach, We'll Find Why — Not Just Manage What.

  • 🔬
    Deep Diagnostic Approach — I Read Your Labs, Review Your Full Health History, and Use Data-Drive Metrics (Advanced Functional Panels) to go Beyond Standard Bloodwork.
  • 🌱
    Food-As-Medicine Approach — I'll Likely Tell You to Eat More! Whole Foods Have Healing Properties; Not Pills. I'm Talking Precision Medical Nutrition! We build a Plan Around What Nourishes Your Unique Biology, Not a Generic Diet.
  • 🤝
    Patient-Led Partnerships — Patient-Led Goals, Compassionate-Counseling, Real Accountability, with Firm Boundaries and a Plan You Can Actually Stick With For the Long Term.
  • 💊
    Fewer Medications, More Freedom — the Goal is to Help You Need Less Intervention, Not More. We Fix the Root, Not the Symptom.
The Science

Your Body Is One System — Not Separate problems

Most Of My Patients Say "I Had No Idea These Were Connected."

Start Clicking And See What We Uncover Together!

How Disruptors Connect To Your Symptoms

Select Any Card Below To Reveal The Root-Cause Pathway

What Disrupts The System
Poor diet quality
Ultra-processed, nutrient-depleted foods
Prolonged restriction
Chronic dieting, extreme fasting
Sympathetic overdrive
Chronic stress, fight-or-flight stuck on
Plastics & EDCs
BPA, phthalates, xenoestrogens
Pathogens
H. pylori, SIBO, parasites, viruses
Nicotine
Cigarettes, vaping, pouches
Medications & drugs
PPIs, SSRIs, opioids, alcohol, hormones
The axes
Stress & Adrenal
Thyroid & Metabolism
Gut & Digestion
Hormones & Cycles
Skin & Microbiome
Pelvic & Vaginal Health
What patients struggle with
Fatigue that sleep doesn't fix
Weight gain or loss resistance
Anxiety, depression, brain fog
Irregular cycles, low libido
Bloating, IBS, food sensitivity
Waking at 2–4am, poor sleep
Frequent illness, slow recovery
Acne, hair loss or skin flares
Recurring yeast, BV or pelvic issues
Stress & Adrenal
Thyroid & Metabolism
Gut & Digestion
Hormones & Cycles
Skin, Hair & Microbiome
Pelvic & Vaginal Health

Tap Any Card To Explore The Connection

Most of my patients say "I had no idea these were connected." Start clicking and see what we uncover together.

You've Explored:
Your Personalized Root Cause Summary

You've Identified Multiple Patterns. That's Your Body Speaking.

You've already spotted some patterns — that's the first step. Enter your email and I'll send you a personalized overview of what I'm seeing, along with what we'd look at together to get you real answers.

🔒 Your email stays private. No spam, ever. Unsubscribe anytime.

Specialties

Built for Adults who Deserve Evidenced-Based Answers from a Registered Dietitian/Nutritionist

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Gut Health

IBS/IBD, SIBO, Crohn's, Celiac, dysbiosis, leaky gut and bile acids. GI-MAP stool analysis to identify exactly what's driving your symptoms.

Hormones & Fatigue

Thyroid (Hashimoto's, Graves'), adrenal function, PCOS, estrogen dominance. Interpreted via DUTCH hormone panel for precision.

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Metabolic Health

Blood sugar regulation, prediabetes, type 2 diabetes, elevated lipids. GLP1/GIP management & CGM (continuous glucose monitoring) interpretation support available.

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Men's Health

Low testosterone, weight gain, metabolic decline, fatigue, and performance. How your body metabolizes testosterone tells us prostate cancer risk. Utilizing the DUTCH Hormone Test.

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Women's Health

Period Issues, Perimenopause, Hair Loss, Menopause, PCOS, Fibroids, Thyroid Issues, UTI, Estrogen Dominance, Bacterial Vaginosis, Estrobolomics

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Mood & Mental Health

Nutritional Psychiatry: Depression, Anxiety, Brain Fog, and the Gut-Brain Axis. Multiple Years Experiencing in Mental Health-few dietitians have!

Also Skilled With: Culinary Medicine · Hepatic (Liver) Support · Anemia · Sports Nutrition
My Framework

The P3F Method

My proprietary approach to helping adults restore energy, improve digestion, optimize metabolism, and age with strength — through functional nutrition and precision testing.

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P1
Pinpoint

Identify the root causes of your symptoms using advanced functional lab testing — not guesswork.

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P2
Plan

A personalized, evidence-based nutrition strategy built around your biology, lifestyle, and specific health goals.

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P3
Practice

Build sustainable habits through ongoing support, accountability, and regular follow-up — not a one-time handout.

+F
Flourish

The goal isn't just feeling better — it's thriving. Restored energy, strength, vitality, and confidence in your body.

The P3F Method In Real Life

Practice In Action

Andrea Zajac RDN teaching a Culinary Medicine cooking class in San Diego
Culinary Medicine

Where Food Becomes Medicine

Nutrition doesn't stop at the prescription pad — it comes to life in the kitchen. My Culinary Medicine classes are where evidence-based food science meets real, everyday cooking.

Because the best nutrition plan in the world only works if you actually enjoy making it.

  • Hands-on cooking demos with therapeutic foods
  • Learn how to prepare meals that support your specific health goals
  • Evidence-based guidance on ingredients, preparation, and technique
  • A fun, judgment-free environment for all cooking levels
Precision Testing

Functional Labs That Reveal What Standard Bloodwork Misses

I Use Advanced, Evidence-Based Diagnostic Tools To Uncover The Cellular-Level Imbalances Driving Your Symptoms.

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GI-MAP Stool Analysis
Identifies parasites, pathogens, opportunistic bacteria, mold, heavy metals, and inflammatory markers in your gut.
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DUTCH Hormone Panel
Complete sex and adrenal hormone mapping, including cortisol rhythm (Cortisol Awakening Response) and metabolite pathways.
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Metabolomix+ Nutritional Analysis
Comprehensive assessment of vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, and toxin exposure — revealing nutritional root causes of chronic disease, fatigue, and mood disorders. At-home collection.
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Nutrigenomics
Genetic analysis of how your unique DNA influences nutrient metabolism, detoxification, and inflammatory response.
MNT
Medical Nutrition Therapy
1
Comprehensive intake — labs, medications, health history, genetics, lifestyle, and environment reviewed in full.
2
Nutritional diagnosis — a precise clinical assessment of what is driving your symptoms at the root level.
3
Personalized treatment plan — evidence-based, whole food, P3F Method, built around your lifestyle and goals.
4
Ongoing monitoring — regular follow-ups to track progress, adjust the plan, and celebrate wins.

Patient Reviews

Real patients. Real results.

★★★★★ 5.0 · 5 Google reviews
How It Works

From first appointment to feeling like yourself again

A structured, supportive process — with no guesswork and no referral needed*.

1

Book Your Visit

Schedule directly online — no referral required*. Choose virtual or in-person and pick a time that works for you.

2

Initial Assessment

A 90-minute deep dive. Labs, history, lifestyle, and goals reviewed in full. A clinical nutrition diagnosis is made.

3

Your P3F Plan

A personalized, evidence-based nutrition strategy — real foods, realistic goals, and functional lab panels if needed.

4

Follow-Up & Flourish

Regular 25-minute check-ins to track progress, adjust your plan, and build habits that last a lifetime.

Ready to Start?

You Deserve Answers — Not Just Management.

I help adults restore energy, improve digestion, harmonize hormones, optimize metabolism, stablize disordered food relationships and age with strength through my P3F Method. Book directly! Referrals by PCPs needed when utilizing insurance for all Medical Nutrition Therapy. Check that your plan covers ICD codes for MNT or Z73.1 Nutritional Counseling for complete coverage.

Initial Assessment (90 min) · Follow-Up (25 min)
Pricing updated — see full pricing page for current rates
Virtual & in-person · San Diego, CA · United Healthcare & Aetna accepted

*Aetna & UHC patients must provide PCP, phone & fax number to acquire a Physician referral to support claim with ICD-10 Codes.