Meet the team
Foodtalk Nutrition was built on a simple belief: nutrition care should be accessible, culturally grounded, and designed for real life, not Instagram.
Founded by siblings Dezi and Marissa Abeyta, both registered dietitians based in Tucson, our practice brings together two complementary approaches to nutrition. Dezi specializes in performance, metabolic health, and longevity for athletes, creatives, and high-output professionals. Marissa focuses on family nutrition, chronic disease prevention, and community-based care. Together, we serve everyone from youth athletes to entire families navigating food, health, and culture.
What makes us different isn't just what we know. It's how we practice.
We're an insurance-based practice because we believe consistent, long-term nutrition care shouldn't be reserved for people who can pay out of pocket. Over 80% of our clients qualify for covered visits, which means nutrition support becomes part of your health routine, not a luxury you access once and never return to.
We don't hand out meal plans and call it done. We help you understand your labs, navigate your appetite, build sustainable habits, and create a relationship with food that feels good. We respect your culture, your schedule, and your humanity. And we meet you where you are, whether that's fueling for a marathon, managing prediabetes, feeding your family, or just trying to feel less tired all the time.
Nutrition isn't just fuel. It's connection, identity, culture, and care. When those pieces come together, real change becomes possible.
Dezi Abeyta, RD
Dezi is a Tucson-based registered dietitian, TEDx speaker, and Men’s Health Magazine nutrition journalist specializing in performance nutrition, metabolic health, men’s hormone health, and insurance-based nutrition care for mental health, families, and athletes across Arizona.
About Me
I didn’t enter nutrition to chase trends or argue about diets online. I got into it because I kept seeing people in my family having a hard time getting healthier, yet still feeling like they were failing.
I’m a Registered Dietitian, TEDx speaker, and nutrition journalist for Men’s Health Magazine, where I cover performance, longevity, metabolic health, and the cultural side of nutrition. My work bridges clinical care, real-life behavior, and the systems people live inside every day.
I began my career in eating disorder and community nutrition before moving into professional sports and high-performance environments, working with MLB organizations, Red Bull athletes, and high-output professionals. On the surface, athletes, executives, and families look different. In practice, they struggle with the same things: underfueling, burnout, metabolic issues, hormone shifts, stress, and shame around food.
That’s the gap I work in.
My focus is performance and longevity, not just in the gym, but in life. Energy. Recovery. Hormone health. Mental stamina. And optimal metabolic health. I help athletes, creatives, and everyday people build nutrition systems that support how they actually live, without stripping away culture, identity, or joy around food.
I founded Foodtalk Nutrition to make this level of care accessible (and to work my sister, see below). We’re an insurance-based practice because nutrition works best when it’s consistent, not when it’s limited to private pay. Most of our clients qualify for covered visits, allowing nutrition care to become part of long-term health rather than a short-term fix.
I don’t see myself as the hero in anyone’s story. The people I work with are already doing the hard part. My role is to guide, to bring clarity when things feel chaotic, and to help people build strength without breaking themselves down.
Nutrition isn’t just fuel. It’s regulation, connection, culture, and care. When those pieces come together, real change becomes possible.
Marissa Abeyta, RD
About Me
I’ve always believed that nutrition is both a relationship and a skill. It’s not something you “get right” overnight. It’s something you learn, practice, and rebuild over time, especially when food has been shaped by stress, culture, access, and family dynamics.
I’m a registered dietitian with a Master of Science from Oregon Health & Science University, and I’m a proud Tucson native. I earned my undergraduate degree at the University of Arizona before completing my graduate training in Oregon, and returning home to serve families and individuals across Southern Arizona has been one of the most meaningful parts of my work.
My background includes community-based nutrition and family-centered care, including my time working with WIC. That experience shaped how I practice. I learned how deeply food is tied to trust, safety, and routine, and how important it is to meet families where they are rather than where the system expects them to be.
My work focuses on families, chronic disease prevention, and community care, with a strong lens on food security, social factors that affect health, and culturally respectful nutrition guidance. While family nutrition is central to what I do, I work with patients of all ages who are navigating nutrition-related concerns or a desire to feel more confident and capable around food.
At the heart of my practice is a simple promise: to help families heal their relationship with food while supporting long-term metabolic health. I provide compassionate, evidence-based nutrition care that fits real life, builds confidence, and reduces overwhelm, without shame or restriction.
Marissa is a Tucson-based registered dietitian specializing in family nutrition, chronic disease prevention, community-based care, food security, and culturally responsive nutrition support for children, adults, and families across Southern Arizona.
Contact us
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