Tasnim El-Mezain is a National Board-Certified Health and Wellness Coach (NBC-HWC) and a Registered Dietitian (RD). Tasnim received her bachelor’s degree in foods and nutrition at San Diego State University, completed her dietetic program at the University of California San Diego Medical Center, and obtained her master’s in Integrative Wellness at Point Loma Nazarene University. Tasnim is also a Diplomate of the American College of Lifestyle Medicine (DipACLM).
Tasnim has been working with the Center for Integrative Medicine at UC San Diego Health since 2022 as a dedicated health and wellness coach with a strong passion for helping individuals achieve sustainable, meaningful change-applying her expertise in coaching and behavior change to support diverse populations. Tasnim specializes in guiding clients toward improved physical health and overall well-being through personalized, evidence-based strategies.
Tasnim’s coaching style is rooted in empathy, active listening, and accountability. She creates a supportive, nonjudgmental environment where clients feel empowered to explore challenges, identify barriers, and develop practical habits aligned with their goals and lifestyles. Skilled in motivational interviewing and goal-setting techniques, Tasnim helps individuals build confidence, strengthen self-discipline, and maintain long-term progress.
Tasnim has experience working with clients at all stages of their wellness journey—from beginners to those refining established routines. Her expertise includes nutrition, physical activity, stress management, and sustainable habit formation, with a holistic focus on both physical and mental well-being. By collaborating with each patient, Tasnim empowers individuals to create lasting, positive lifestyle changes.
During a first health and wellness coaching visit, patients can expect a supportive, judgment-free conversation focused on their health goals, lifestyle habits, and overall well-being. Tasnim will explore areas such as stress, nutrition, sleep, movement, and daily routines while helping the patient identify realistic and meaningful goals for change.
To prepare, patients are encouraged to reflect on their current health concerns, wellness goals, and any lifestyle changes they would like to make. Bringing relevant health information or provider recommendations may also be helpful. No special preparation is required — the session is collaborative and designed to meet patients where they are.
Kristina Graham is a National Board Certified Health & Wellness Coach at the Center for Integrative Medicine at UC San Diego Health. She brings more than seven years of experience in obesity medicine and lifestyle intervention and is passionate about helping patients create meaningful, sustainable health behavior change.
At UC San Diego Health, Kristina has provided individualized and group health coaching using evidence-based behavior change strategies. Her work includes supporting patients in sustainable nutrition, physical activity, and habit formation, as well as guiding bariatric surgery candidates through medically supervised diet visits to meet insurance requirements. She is known for building strong patient rapport and delivering practical, patient-centered lifestyle strategies.
Kristina is a CDC-recognized National Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) lifestyle coach and has completed Lifestyle Medicine for Coaches training through the American College of Lifestyle Medicine. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Healthy Lifestyle Coaching from Arizona State University.
Outside of work, Kristina enjoys cooking, staying active through kickboxing and golf, following San Diego sports, and spending time with her husband and three dogs. She also volunteers monthly with Meals on Wheels, supporting nutrition access and social connection for homebound older adults.
I believe lasting health behavior change happens when care is collaborative, realistic, and individualized. My approach is patient-centered and nonjudgmental, focusing on helping patients bridge the gap between knowing what to do and consistently applying it in everyday life.
During your visits, we will explore your health goals, daily routines, strengths, and challenges in a supportive and collaborative environment. Sessions are tailored to your individual needs and may focus on areas such as nutrition, physical activity, stress management, sleep, habit formation, and overall wellness.
Rather than providing rigid plans or quick fixes, health coaching focuses on helping you develop sustainable strategies that fit your lifestyle. Patients can expect practical goal setting, accountability, and ongoing support to help create lasting behavior change over time.
Tiffany Holt is an integrative registered dietitian nutritionist (RD/RDN) and research dietitian with the Centers for Integrative Nutrition and Integrative Research at UC San Diego Health. In her current position, she splits her time between outpatient clinical care and nutrition research. In clinical practice she offers one on one counseling to help implement meaningful nutrition changes for shifting disease processes back towards wellness. As a research dietitian, she assists in all stages of a study including protocol development, intervention implementation, and data analysis. Previous or active research projects include whole food, plant-based, and anti-inflammatory diets in the setting of hormone-related conditions, cancer, digestive diseases, eye diseases, autoimmunity and mental health conditions.
Nutrition became a passion for Tiffany after applying "food as medicine" in her own life as a Division I soccer player facing injury. While she continues to compete in recreation soccer leagues today, she has become a professional in the nutrition world. She has also served as a board member and past-president with the San Diego District of the California Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, a state affiliate of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (AND). Tiffany is a member of specialized Dietary Practice Groups including Dietitians in Integrative & Functional Medicine (DIFM), Research Nutrition, Cardiovascular Health and Well-being (CV-Well), and Sports and Human Performance Nutrition (SHPN).
Tiffany graduated with advanced nutrition training from Bastyr University master's degree program. While in practice, she has also completed functional nutrition training with the Institute of Functional Medicine, Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, and peer-to-peer mentorship with tenured RDNs. Her work experience with UC San Diego Eating Disorders Center for Treatment and Research, Bastyr Center for Natural Health (BCNH), and dietetic internship with UC San Diego Health, have been invaluable learning opportunities she uses daily as a dietitian.
Outside of work, Tiffany enjoys family time with her husband and kids, cooking, playing soccer, running and weight training. Reading, sunshine and tending to her plants, are her restoration essentials.
Tiffany is an integrative registered dietitian nutritionist and research dietitian, passionate about using whole foods for healing and preventing disease. She specializes in metabolic health, gastrointestinal conditions, women's health, and eating disorders.
The Center for Integrative Nutrition (CIN) vision is to embrace food as the cornerstone of health and disease prevention, treatment, and recovery, for individuals, communities, and the entire planet. CIN supports a food first approach to nutrition-related care. Strategies including culinary medicine and behavior change counseling are integrated into nutrition goals to cultivate meaningful interventions for patients. This specialty practice allows the RDN to blend standard nutrition care with aspects of lifestyle, complementary, alternative, and functional medicine. All of these types of medicine encompass patient-centered, healing-oriented approaches that embraces conventional and complementary therapies. Overall, our RDNs apply the concept of Food as Medicine in a clinical setting and treat a wide variety of medical diagnoses ranging from chronic diseases to weight loss or weight gain to autoimmune and rheumatological conditions, as well as counseling for weight management and eating behaviors.
Patients can expect visits to focus is on collaboration between patient and provider to create patient centered, data-driven, safe, and customized nutrition and lifestyle recommendations. Nutrition visits at CIN allow time for developing a meaningful partnership and regular follow up care starting with review of diet journals and completed with detailed after visit goals. Food as medicine is for everyone in a situation where they are open to changes in their diet to better their health.
Anna Morrell, MS, RDN, is an integrative Registered Dietitian at UC San Diego Health, specializing in integrative and functional nutrition. She provides individualized medical nutrition therapy for gastrointestinal disorders, metabolic health, women’s health, and chronic disease prevention. In addition to clinical care, Anna is involved in culinary medicine education and inter/intradisciplinary teaching. She earned her Master of Science in Nutritional Science from San Diego State University and completed her dietetic internship at UC San Diego Health.
Anna is an integrative registered dietitian who takes a whole-person approach to nutrition, specializing in digestive health, disease prevention, and women's health. She also teaches culinary medicine courses that blend cooking with functional foods expertise.
Anna views food not only as medicine, but also as a meaningful form of self-care and an investment in your future health and well-being. Nutrition is the foundation! Anna takes an individualized and evidence-based approach; she considers the interconnected influences of lifestyle, stress, sleep, movement, environment, and relationship with food when developing nutrition interventions. She strives to empower patients with practical, sustainable strategies that support long-term healing, resilience, and overall wellness.
Patients can expect an individualized, patient-led approach during their initial visit, with their personal goals, health concerns, and priorities guiding the session. Before the appointment, patients will complete a detailed 3-day diet journal along with any medications or supplements they take. The first visit is designed not only to gather a comprehensive understanding of overall health and nutrition status, but also to provide meaningful education tailored to the patient’s needs. Equally important, the initial session serves as an opportunity to build rapport, establish trust, and develop a collaborative foundation that supports more personalized and effective follow-up care.
Graduating from Bastyr University in Kenmore, Washington and completing her dietetic internship at LAC +USC Medical Center in 2006, Kathleen has had a varied career. Always working from a holistic health foundation, Kathleen has worked in clinical dietetics, integrative nutrition, organizational management and entrepreneurship.