Meet our Dietitian
Alex Salmon
Accredited Practising Dietitian | Accredited Nutritionist
Master of Dietetics ‘14 | Graduate Diploma Human Nutrition ‘12 | Bachelor of Science ‘10
Hi, I’m Alex - an Accredited Practising Dietitian (APD) and Oncology Dietitian based in Melbourne, Australia.
I have a passion for helping people feel confident in their food choices and at peace in their bodies. After working with hundreds of women with breast cancer in inpatient care, chemotherapy units, and oncology rehabilitation, I became frustrated with the lack of support and resources patients had access to. So many women were struggling with diet confusion, treatment side effects, and poor body confidence. And even though I knew I had the experience to help, I never had enough time in the day with all my other clinical duties. So in 2022, I started Feel Better Nutrition — to provide the support, guidance, and practical tools people with breast cancer need to feel nourished, confident, and cared for.
After studying at Melbourne and Deakin Universities for 6 years, I started my career at St Vincent’s Private Hospital Melbourne in 2014. It didn’t take long for me to find my place in oncology, working in the day oncology unit and with the oncology rehabilitation team. I’ve been lucky to work alongside some truly incredible medical and allied health teams and have learned so much from them — and from the hundreds of patients I’ve had the privilege to support over the years.
Seeing my patients doing better because of something we worked together to achieve feels amazing and that’s a huge part of why I’m drawn to oncology. It’s also close to my heart. My dad has been navigating his own cancer journey for many years, and watching him continue to fight and survive, it’s given me so much drive to help others in the same position.
Like many people I struggled with body image and diet in my younger years. Through my studies I discovered the negative impact diet culture has had on the way we feel about our bodies, always striving for the “thin ideal”, and leading us down a dangerous path of disordered eating. I started to reject the culture of dieting and the notion that thin was better and began to heal my relationship with food. Rejecting diet culture and healing my own relationship with food was life-changing, and it inspired me to dive deeper into the psychology of eating. I went on to do further training in the Non-Diet Approach, Health at Every Size®, Intuitive Eating, Motivational Interviewing as well as Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. This further study has enabled a more considered approach to working in the oncology space, acknowledging the psychosocial impact that cancer can have on diet variety, body image, food access and self-care.
In my work with breast cancer, I noticed many of my patients were experiencing stress and anxiety around food, struggling to fuel their bodies well and feeling disconnected from their changing bodies. The extra study into food behaviour, weight science and the Non-Diet Approach has helped to provide extra support to those struggling with their body image. I’ve been rewarded with knowing I’m helping people on a deeper level and far beyond the cancer journey.
These days, I split my time between my private practice, Feel Better Nutrition, and my clinical oncology role at St Vincent’s Private, where I work with people with all types of cancer. I love the mix — staying connected to clinical practice while getting to build a supportive, nurturing space for people to explore food and health in a really meaningful way.
When I’m not working, you’ll find me running, exploring the beautiful nature around our home in Hurstbridge, or picking veggies and fruit from our abundant garden. My 3-year-old keeps me busy, and I treasure our regular coffee/cino dates and all the messy, joyful moments that come with this season of life.
If you’ve read this far, thanks for being here. I’ve got big dreams for this practice, and I hope you’ll come along for the ride with me.
Alex xx
