DHA Clinical Dietician study guide
DHA Clinical Dietician · Work through your exam, one topic at a time.
The DHA Clinical Dietician credential is a Dubai Health Authority licensing examination that dietitians must pass to be registered to practise clinically in Dubai. It is aimed at nutrition and dietetics graduates, including internationally trained candidates, who intend to work in hospitals, clinics, long-term care and community health settings in the emirate. The DHA Clinical Dietician study guide has 8 sections and about 2,157 words.
01Nutrition Science and Macronutrient/Micronutrient Metabolism
Candidates must be fluent in energy balance (Atwater factors: carbohydrate 4 kcal/g, protein 4 kcal/g, fat 9 kcal/g, alcohol 7 kcal/g), the fate of macronutrients in fed and fasted states, and the regulation of glycemia, lipemia, and nitrogen balance. Know the hormonal axes: insulin (anabolic, promotes glycogen, lipogenesis, protein synthesis, potassium and phosphate intracellular shift), glucagon (glycogenolysis, gluconeogenesis, ketogenesis), cortisol (proteolysis, gluconeogenesis), and thyroid hormone (basal metabolic rate).
316 words, about 2 min02Nutrition Assessment and Anthropometry
Assessment integrates the nutrition-focused physical exam (NFPE), anthropometry, biochemical data, clinical history, and dietary intake. Know how to compute and interpret BMI (kg/m²), ideal and adjusted body weight, percent weight change over time, and waist circumference risk thresholds.
289 words, about 1 min03Medical Nutrition Therapy in Acute and Chronic Disease
MNT is disease-specific. Know carbohydrate counting and glycemic targets in diabetes, the role of the CKD stage-based protein prescription (higher in dialysis, restricted in non-dialysis CKD), sodium and fluid restriction in heart failure, DASH and potassium in hypertension, low-FODMAP and gluten-free diets in GI disease, and post-bariatric protein and micronutrient supplementation.
267 words, about 1 min04Nutrition Support (Enteral and Parenteral)
Understand indications, contraindications, access routes, and complications of enteral nutrition (EN) and parenteral nutrition (PN). EN is preferred when the gut works ("if the gut works, use it"), and short-term access is nasogastric or nasoenteric; long-term is gastrostomy or jejunostomy.
292 words, about 1 min05Lifecycle and Community Nutrition
Nutrition needs change across the lifecycle: pregnancy and lactation (folate, iron, iodine, choline, DHA, energy needs in the second and third trimesters), infancy (breast milk or iron-fortified formula, introduction of complementary foods around 6 months, vitamin D supplementation), childhood and adolescence (growth spurts, iron in menstruating teens), adulthood, and older adulthood (sarcopenia, vitamin B12 absorption, vitamin D and calcium, hydration, dysphagia). Community nutrition applies public health frameworks: food insecurity screening, the social determinants of health, food assistance programs, and culturally tailored counseling.
266 words, about 1 min06Food Service Systems and Food Safety
Food service systems include conventional, commissary, ready-prepared, and assembly-serve models; each has distinct labor, equipment, and food-safety implications. Understand HACCP principles (hazard analysis, critical control points, monitoring, corrective actions, verification, record keeping) and the temperature danger zone (4-60°C/40-140°F).
260 words, about 1 min07Dietetics Professional Practice, Ethics, and Communication
Professional practice rests on scope of practice, standards of care, and the nutrition care process (assessment, diagnosis, intervention, monitoring/evaluation). Know how to write a PES statement (Problem, Etiology, Signs/Symptoms) and to use standardized language.
235 words, about 1 min08Research, Evidence-Based Practice, and Quality Improvement
Evidence-based practice integrates best available evidence, clinical expertise, and patient values. Know study designs (RCT, cohort, case-control, cross-sectional, systematic review/meta-analysis), measures of association (RR, OR, HR), and measures of effect (ARR, NNT).
232 words, about 1 min