Summary

North Dakota licenses dietitians as licensed registered dietitians and nutritionists as licensed nutritionists. A license is required to provide medical nutrition therapy (MNT), which North Dakota defines as:
the provision of nutrition care services for the treatment or management of a disease or medical condition. The term includes the provision of any part or all of the following services:  
a. Interpreting anthropometric, biochemical, clinical, and dietary data in acute and chronic disease states and recommending or ordering nutrient needs based on the dietary data, including tube feedings and parenteral nutrition.
b. Food and nutrient counseling, including food and prescription drug interactions.  
c. Developing and managing food service operations, including operations for the management or treatment of disease or medical conditions, with the primary function of nutrition care or recommending or ordering therapeutic diets.  
d. Medical weight control.
There is no licensure requirement for providing nutrition services that are not medical nutrition therapy. Key exemptions are found in section 43-44-10 of the law.
Click the buttons below to read the state statute and rules or to navigate to the state regulatory entity's website. 

Practice Act/Statute Rules & Regulations Regulatory Body

QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS FOR STATE LICENSURE OR STATE CERTIFICATION:

• Academic: 
  • Dietitian: Satisfactorily complete the education requirements for registered dietitian nutritionists approved by the commission on dietetic registration of the academy of nutrition and dietetics or its predecessor or successor organization.
  • Nutritionist: Have received a master's or doctoral nutrition degree or validated foreign equivalent with a major course of study in human nutrition, foods and nutrition, community nutrition, public health nutrition, nutrition education, nutrition, nutrition science, clinical nutrition, applied clinical nutrition, nutrition counseling, nutrition and functional medicine, nutritional biochemistry, nutrition and integrative health, or a comparable course of study, or a master's or doctoral degree or validated foreign equivalent, in a field of clinical health care from a college or university accredited at the time of graduation from the appropriate regional accrediting agency recognized by the council on higher education accreditation and the United States department of education, and have completed coursework leading to competence in medical nutrition therapy which must consist of the following courses: (1) Fifteen semester hours of clinical or life sciences, including such courses as chemistry, organic chemistry, biology, molecular biology, biotechnology, botany, genetics, genomics, neuroscience, experimental science, immunotherapy, pathology, pharmacology, toxicology, research methods, applied statistics, biostatistics, epidemiology, energy production, molecular pathways, hormone and transmitter regulations and imbalance, and pathophysiologic basis of disease. At least three semester hours must be in human anatomy and physiology or the equivalent. (2) Fifteen semester hours of nutrition and metabolism, including such courses as nutrition assessment, developmental nutrition, nutritional aspects of disease, human nutrition, macronutrients, micronutrients, vitamins and minerals, clinical functional medicine nutrition, molecular metabolism, nutrition, nutritional biochemistry, nutrition and digestive health, and public health nutrition. At least six semester hours must be in biochemistry or an equivalent as approved by the board.
• Experience: 
  • Dietitian: must have satisfactorily completed the experience requirements for registered dietitian nutritionists approved by the commission on dietetic registration of the academy of nutrition and dietetics or its predecessor or successor organization.
  • Nutritionist: must have completed a board-approved internship or a documented, supervised practice experience demonstrating competency in nutrition care services and the provision of medical nutrition therapy of not less than 1,000 hours including at least 200 hours of nutrition assessment, 200 hours of nutrition intervention, education, counseling, or management, and 200 hours of nutrition monitoring or evaluation. A minimum of 700 hours of supervised practice experience is required in professional work settings and no more than three hundred hours can be in alternate supervised experiences such as observational client-practitioner interactions, simulation, case studies, and role playing. This experience must be under the supervision of a qualified supervisor. A qualified supervisor shall provide onsite supervision of an applicant's supervised practice experience in the provision of medical nutrition therapy and provide general supervision of an applicant's provision of other nutrition care services that do not constitute medical nutrition therapy. See definitions for additional language regarding supervision. Please note that a qualified supervisor must be licensed in ND if supervising an applicant providing medical nutrition therapy to an individual in ND.
• Examination: 
  • Dietitian: Satisfactorily complete the examination approved and administered by the commission on dietetic registration of the academy of nutrition and dietetics or its predecessor or successor organization.
  • Nutritionist: successfully complete a board-approved examination such as the certification examination for nutrition specialists administered by the board for certification of nutrition specialists or the diplomate examination administered by the American clinical board of nutrition; or (2) The applicant has either a valid certification with the board for certification of nutrition specialists that gives the applicant the right to use the term "certified nutrition specialist" or "CNS" or a valid certification with the American clinical board of nutrition which gives the applicant the right to use the term "diplomate, American clinical board of nutrition" or "DACBN".

Disclaimer: This is a preliminary interpretation of language of state statutes and regulations, and cannot substitute for legal counsel.