Julie Thenell, BS, MS, NC, Board Certified in Holistic Nutrition®, Certified Dietary Supplement Professional™

Board Chair

Julie Thenell, BS/MS/NC/BCHN®/CDSP™, believes good health is as close as your kitchen. Her nutrition practice is based on nutrient-dense whole food and lifestyle choices that support health and well-being, especially during times of high stress and transitions. Her role is to educate, guide, and support individuals in their pursuit of stress management and resilience building.

In addition to her private nutrition practice, Julie serves as Chair of the Holistic Nutrition Credentialing Board and NANP’s Certified Dietary Supplement Professional Committee. She also actively participates in the Continuing Education and Educational Standards Committees. She is proud to align herself with professionals who share the belief that nutrition and lifestyle play critical roles in health and are taking steps to make significant changes in our nation’s health.

Part of Julie’s “lead by example” lifestyle includes hiking, biking, running, snowshoeing, reading, cooking, and sipping tea. She is on a mission to inspire others to nourish themselves despite the daily stressors in life to build resilience and thrive.

Tanja-Maria Zeise, MD, NC, Board Certified in Holistic Nutrition®

Board Co-chair

Tanja-Maria Zeise, MD, NC, BCHN® is passionate about holistic health. She received her M.D. from the Freie University Berlin in Germany. While she is fascinated by the human body, physiology, and biochemistry, she found that allopathic medicine offers limited support to achieve holistic health. On her journey to comprehend holistic health she worked in diabetes research at the University of New Mexico, completed a workshop in homeopathy as well as the Foundations of Narrative Health Coaching program through Teleosis Institute, and received her nutrition consultant certification from Bauman College. Tanja then became an instructor, researcher, curriculum writer and editor at Bauman College. In addition to having a private nutrition consulting practice, Tanja teaches a nutrition class in continuing education at the College of Marin in California.

Tanja always looks for ways to create balance. Through education in mindfulness and by efforts to maximize nutritional density while simplifying her cooking methods, this approach creates time and opportunity to be outdoors, bike, hike, swim, practice Pilates and yoga, read, create art, and spend time with friends and family.

TAMMERA J. KARR, Ph.D., BCHN®, CGP, CNW®, CDSP™

Tammera brings 25-plus years of clinical experience as a nutrition educator, author, researcher, and food historian.  Passionate about nutrition as the key to stopping many modern illnesses, she has authored books and programs inspired by the key concepts of Holistic Nutrition; for educators, practitioners and consumers.

A Pacific College of Health and Sciences faculty member in the Masters of Science in Health and Human Performance (MSHHP) program, Tammera shares with nutrition students the importance of the BCHN® and CDPS™ credentials and membership in the NANP.

A Native of Oregon, Tammera enjoys the challenge of research, food history, whole-food cooking, herbology, and traditional food preservation: canning, drying, and fermenting.  Life on a remote ranger station in the southern cascades of Oregon and the high desert of central Oregon with her family for over fifty years has fostered an independent and proactive approach to sustainable health and lifestyle.

NANP COMMITTEES:  Continuing Education (Chair), Educational Standards, Ethics, Poster Boards

KIRSTIN NUSSGRUBER, BCHN®, CNC, EMB

A cancer nutrition expert, author, and speaker, Kirstin is passionate about helping people overcome cancer overwhelm by teaching them how to reclaim their lives. A two-time cancer survivor herself, she learned firsthand the importance of an integrative medicine approach to one’s health to facilitate true recovery. She offers personalized mentoring packages to private clients and collaborates with functional medicine practitioners.

Kirstin is the author of Confessions of a Cancer Conqueror – My 5-Step Process to Transform Your Relationship with Cancer, which is a combination memoir and self-help guide for people looking for an evidence-based integrative approach to supporting their health. With her End of Life Doula Professional Certificate from the University of Vermont, she offers non-judgmental, emotional support and proactive guidance to Stage IV cancer clients and their caregivers.

Kirstin has been a guest on numerous podcasts, including the Five To Thrive Live – The Cancer Support Network radio show, the Anti-Cancer Club, 15 Minute Matrix, and Princeton Community TV.  Currently, she is pursuing further education with the Mederi Academy under the tutelage of Donnie Yance MH, CN, and is a participating member of his alumni Round Table discussions as well as Dr Nalini Chilkov’s monthly clinical integrative oncology Live Round Calls.

Professional memberships include the NANP (National Association of Nutrition Professionals, past Acting President), SIO (Society for Integrative Oncology), OncANP (Oncology Association of Naturopathic Practitioners), and NEDA (National End-of-Life Doula Alliance). She volunteers at Paws for Therapy, Houston, with her personally trained goldendoodle Minka, and at the Memorial Hermann Health System, Houston.

Kirstin shares her philosophy, inspiring blogs, and self-created recipes at www.kirstinscancercare.com. She is also part of the Chilkov Clinic and the integrative Wellness Team at Valley Integrative Pharmacy.

Francesca Orlando, MS, NTP, CGP, Board Certified in Holistic Nutrition®

Francesca Orlando, NTP, CGP, BCHN, has been in practice since 2009. Her knowledge of nutrition science, physiology, pathology, and the use of nutriceuticals spans over a decade. She completed a Master of Science in Integrative Nutrition in the spring of 2023.

In her practice, Francesca uses functional and integrative nutrition to develop therapies tailored to address each client’s unique underlying causes of illness. Her integrative “whole person” approach looks at more than the diet. She incorporates lifestyle, stress, inflammation, medical history, and even meaningful relationships. She also uses coaching techniques to help clients implement changes and remove barriers and obstacles to change.

April Stooksberry, MS, BCHN®, CNP, NBHWC

April Stooksberry, MS, BCHN®, CNP, NBHWC, is an avid researcher and advocate of nutrition and lifestyle as a way to improve health and quality of life. This passion began in her 20’s due to personal health issues and progressed into a career to help others struggling with health issues.

She started a private practice in 2012 after receiving a Master of Science degree in Nutrition. She has become board-certified in holistic nutrition through the NANP (2021) and has also become certified as a health and wellness coach through NBHWC (2021). She has also become a Certified Functional Genomics & Nutrition Coach and continues to pursue education in this new and changing field of health science.

Her primary focus in private practice is supporting clients through their cancer journey as a holistic cancer coach as well as supporting clients who deal with autoimmune disorders. This is accomplished through educating clients about nutrition, lifestyle, and environment factors as well as educating clients about how their individual genetic profile may affect their health and shape their wellness decisions. She incorporates coaching techniques to help clients discover strengths and set goals to help them succeed. Her YouTube channel @NewSenseNutrition provides several educational videos.

April is also an adjunct instructor for the Holistic Wellness Pathway program at Hill College which provides basic and advanced nutrition and herbalism education as well as coaching training and business tools training for students interested in becoming holistic wellness practitioners.

April is a dog lover! She currently has two canines which are both rescues. Jett is an American Pit Bull and Ruger is a Black Mouth Cur / Labrador mix. She donates to and volunteers for several local dog rescue organizations.