E99: From Culinary Roots To Community Wellness With Dietitian Laura Zervos

What makes Laura Zervos with Laura Zervos Food and Nutritional Services a Good Neighbor?

Looking for nutrition advice that survives real life, not just a perfect week? We sit down with registered dietitian and licensed nutritionist Laura Zervos, whose culinary-school roots and private practice in Bethel Park bring flavor and science together. Laura works with clients in person and remotely to manage chronic conditions and weight through strategies that are simple, flexible, and built for busy schedules.

Laura shares the surprising bridge from restaurant kitchens to patient care, and how that experience shapes her approach to meal planning, grocery shopping, and cooking techniques that make healthy food taste good. We unpack stubborn myths- like the idea that one session fixes everything, or that age, cost, and time make change impossible- and replace them with a step-by-step method that turns “I know what to do” into “I’m doing it every day.” You’ll hear how she tailors plans for clients from ages two to eighty-five, why many find her after a new diagnosis like prediabetes or fatty liver, and how consistent check-ins remove barriers before they become roadblocks.

We also dive into Mediterranean-style eating and why it adapts so well to local life. Laura lays out practical ways to bring more color, fiber, and satisfaction onto the plate without losing the joy of food: sheet-pan veggies, bean-forward soups, whole grains, olive oil, herbs, and smarter snacks that carry you through commutes, meetings, and social events. Her process is grounded in real routines- family meals, travel, book club brunches- and the honest adjustments that make healthy choices stick when life gets messy.

If you want evidence-based nutrition that fits your world, this conversation delivers. Listen, take one small step today, and build from there. Subscribe for more neighborhood stories with practical takeaways, share this with a friend who’s ready for change, and leave a review to tell us the habit you’ll try this week.

To learn more about Laura Zervos Food and Nutritional Services go to: 

http://www.laurazervos.com/

Laura Zervos Food and Nutritional Services

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Episode Transcript

SPEAKER_00 (00:00):
This is the Good Neighbor Podcast, the place
where local businesses andneighbors come together.
Here's your host, Lila Carter.

SPEAKER_02 (00:12):
Welcome to the Good Neighbor Podcast.
Are you in need of a dietitian?
One might be closer than youthink.
Today I have the pleasure ofintroducing your good neighbor,
Laura Zervis, with Laura ZervisFood and Nutritional Services.
Laura, how's it going?
Very well, Lila.
How about with you?
Very well.

(00:33):
Thanks so much.
We're excited to learn all aboutyou and your business.
So please tell us more aboutyour company.

SPEAKER_01 (00:39):
Oh, well, thank you.
I'm excited to be here and talkabout it.
So again, like you said, LauraZervis Food Nutritional
Services.
I'm a registered dietitian andlicensed nutritionist.
And I have a private practice inBethel Park.
And I also see clients remotelytoo.
So if you're not close to me,that's always an option.
But I help clients managechronic disease through

(01:00):
lifestyle choices.
And then I would say the otherhalf of my business is focused,
and it's just the way it turnsout is weight management.
So I have both of those and youknow, and numerous chronic
diseases that we deal with, youknow, for that have dietary
solutions to them.

SPEAKER_02 (01:18):
How did you get into this business initially, Laura?

SPEAKER_01 (01:21):
Well, initially I started out in culinary school
and I really enjoyed that.
But as I went further into theprocess, I thought this is not
going to be conducive to familylife that I knew that I wanted.
I knew I wanted, you know, anice family life and some
work-life balance.
And this has really afforded methat.
And I could combine, I had anutrition class in culinary

(01:44):
school, and I thought, well,that would be a great fit, and
that would be a good career pathfor me.
And it's really helped me be abetter dietitian, to be honest
with you.
So that it's all worked outreally well.

SPEAKER_02 (01:53):
Absolutely.
That's such a cool path.
Yeah.
So are there any myths or maybemisconceptions in your industry
that you'd like to talk about?

SPEAKER_01 (02:02):
Sure.
I would say some myths might bethat, oh, there's probably
several.
One that, you know, you wouldjust meet with me one time and
then you're on your way.
You know, I typically work withpeople over a period of time
because it does take more than apiece of paper or one
interaction with me to makelasting change.
And that depends on yoursituation also.

(02:23):
Um, but the other myth is thatI'm too old, it's too expensive,
um, I don't have the time.
I mean, we could all find waysto um incorporate small changes
to make a larger change overtime.

SPEAKER_02 (02:37):
Right, absolutely.
And whenever you're making achange in your life, you have to
get past those reasons or thosemaybe excuses to make that
change.

SPEAKER_01 (02:47):
That's what's any big change in our lives, right?
Yeah.
There's so many people alwaystell me, I know what to do.
I know what to do.
I don't need to talk to you.
I know how to eat healthy, Iknow how to do this.
And it's maybe they they've beenputting it off.
So I tell people, okay, you knowwhat to do, but I'm gonna show
you how to do it and how toactually put it into place so
you can get started.

SPEAKER_02 (03:07):
And there's such a difference between, okay, I
think I know how to eat healthyversus I know a diet that's
going to nutritionallysupplement everything that I
need.
Right off.
Right.
So who are your target customersthen and how are you attracting
them to your business?

SPEAKER_01 (03:23):
Right.
So as far as the people that Isee, I see, you know, throughout
the whole life cycle.
My youngest client is two, myoldest is probably 85.
But I would say that the mostpeople, like my target audience
right now, I would say peopleage, and that's a hard one, uh,
but my the biggest percentage ofmy population is probably 35

(03:45):
through 65.
And um, you know, maybe they'rerecently diagnosed with
prediabetes or a fatty liver.
Maybe they just came from theirdoctor and they're they're uh
made aware of some of theseconditions.
So um I get a lot of referralsfrom physicians' practices.
Um people find me on socialmedia, and a lot is just by

(04:06):
referral, you know, word ofmouth.
You know, maybe somebody thathas had an experience with me
and they've, you know, had agood experience and they want
to, you know, pass that along.

SPEAKER_02 (04:15):
Yeah.
Have you ever about thoughtabout doing your own podcast to
reach your audience?

SPEAKER_01 (04:20):
I have.
I haven't put that in motion,but that is uh it's very
intimidating, but I would loveto do that.
It's it sounds uh a little umscared to do that, but I would
love to do it as well because Ifeel like you could reach a lot
of people, and that's I lovelistening to them myself.

SPEAKER_02 (04:36):
Yeah, well, maybe we could help you reduce some of
the intimidation factor there.
Okay.
Outside of work, what do you dofor fun?

SPEAKER_01 (04:44):
Um, well, I really love spending time with my
family.
I I do practice what I preach.
So we do eat, you know, wepretty much have a family meal
if we're all home.
Um, you know, I mean like peopleactually at living in the house.
Um, so we do that.
And um I also do a lot ofgardening, travel, and I I
really like the travel becauseit really provides me with a lot

(05:05):
of inspiration, you know, seeingwhat other cultures are doing,
um, as far as, you know, whattheir um, I hate to say diet,
what their eating patterns arelike and what their lifestyles
are like.
So yeah, that I like to do thosekind of things.

SPEAKER_02 (05:18):
Yeah, I know that the Mediterranean diet is
supposed to be like one of thehealthiest in the world.
Are there any other culturesthat you point to and say
they're doing a really good job?

SPEAKER_01 (05:28):
Um, well, I would say the Mediterranean is the one
that I point to most often.
And it's because we don't haveto live in the Mediterranean to
do it.
You know, we could do it righthere where we are, and um, it's
easy to adopt some of thoseprinciples.
Um, that's that's the main one.
I'm a big proponent of that.

SPEAKER_02 (05:46):
Excellent.
Well, Laura, please tell ourlisteners one thing that they
should remember about LauraZervis food and nutritional
services.

SPEAKER_01 (05:55):
Oh, sure.
Um, it's really, and I tell thisevery time I meet with somebody
that um, look, it's one of theeasiest appointments you'll
have.
I'm really gonna get to knowyou.
So I look at somebody's, youknow, um, when they come to see
me, we review their past medicalhistory, any medications that
they're on.
And then, you know, after we getall of that stuff out of the
way, then we talk about yourlife.

(06:16):
What's a typical Tuesday like ifyou work Monday through Friday?
Do you have a commute?
What are we doing?
How are we different if theyare?
And I really get to knoweverything about your life and
those kind of things and reallygive you some good, you know,
some good strategies to helpimprove your wellness.
And then, you know, as we meetthe next time and you know,
you've put some of those thingsinto place.

(06:38):
I don't expect anybody to walkaway and put all those things
into place at one time.
It's a it's a slow process.
But then I always ask, you know,what barriers do you have?
You know, what's keeping youfrom having continued progress?
And we that's what we deal withbecause it's easy, right?
While we're talking and it'ssimple, it's real easy, but then
life happens.
What do you do when you have abridal shower on the weekend and

(06:58):
a brunch and book club and allthese you know things are, you
know, or you're caring for anelderly parent or you're running
children around every day afterschool.
How do we deal with thosethings?
Right.

SPEAKER_02 (07:09):
It's such a realistic approach that you
have.

SPEAKER_01 (07:12):
Thank you.
Thank you.

SPEAKER_02 (07:14):
So, how can our listeners learn more about your
business?

SPEAKER_01 (07:17):
Sure.
Um, my website, lauraservis.com.
Um, I also use social media, youknow, try to put out new
recipes, new tips, you know,seasonal, whatever we're dealing
with out there, um, Instagramand Facebook.
You could learn more that way.
Or you could just call me too.
All my contact information isout there.
I'd be happy to discuss ifanybody wanted to come on board
to be a client.

SPEAKER_02 (07:38):
Excellent.
Well, Laura, I really appreciateyour time today and having you
as a guest on our show.
We wish you and your businessthe best moving forward.
Uh, thank you.

SPEAKER_00 (07:49):
Thank you for listening to the Good Neighbor
Podcast.
To nominate your favorite localbusinesses to be featured on the
show, go to gnppittsburgh.com.
That's gnppittsburgh.com or call412 561 9956.