Gastrointestinal Symptom - Paediatric-Nutrition

Carine Henry RD
Nutritional Assessment
Dietary Treatment
Diet-related Conditions
- Feeding Difficulties in Infancy
  
  Feeding difficulties include a range of scenarios where infants are not willing to feed in order to meet their nutritional needs.
- Feeding Behaviours in Early & School Years
  
  Feeding behaviours respond well to a framework of structure, nurture & boundaries, including feeding difficulties, toddler refusal and ARFID.
- Cows Milk Difficulties
  
  Cow’s Milk Allergy affects 1 in 20 infants in their first year of life. It is a spectrum condition, with a wide range of presentations, sometimes difficult to distinguish from other common problems in infancy.
- Gastrointestinal Symptoms
  
  Constipation describes from the slow movement of poo through the bowel, which is affected by body movement, food, fibre and fluid intake, breath, stress & anxiety, repeated illness and the quality of the gut microbiota.
- Disordered Eating in Teens
  
  Most young people comfort eat at some point, we all do, because food feels nice and when we eat, neurochemicals like dopamine are released into the bloodstream, making us feel good. It’s absolutely normal to comfort eat from time to time.
- Eating Well for the Whole Family
  
  Dieting or not sharing foods with other family members, can feel difficult and upsetting at a deep and unconscious level.
Dietary Treatment Tools

Structure Nurture and Boundaries

Carine uses this framework in all the work she does with infants, children, teens and families. She acts as nutrition educator, guide and supporter, providing resources and strategic tools.

Benefits of Diet Diversity

A diverse diet is the single most valuable way of meeting a child’s nutritional needs. The first nutritional need for a child to thrive well is energy.
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Troubles with Toileting

Constipation describes from the slow movement of pooh through the bowel, which is affected by body movement, food, fibre and fluid intake, breath, stress & anxiety, repeated illness and the quality of the gut microbiota. Laxatives can help clear the bowel of slow moving pooh, and in the longer term, dietary treatment is often needed to help young children avoid getting stuck on laxatives. A collection of symptoms rather than a condition, constipation is especially common in the toddler years during toilet training. If un-tackled, it can become a tricky problem to solve, and can take years to treat effectively. Constipation can affect children of any age, and for teens is a symptom of irritable bowel syndrome. Fear of toileting; painful evacuation, holding in pooh and abdominal pain are all features, with diarrhoea showing up also as sneaky-pooh, otherwise known as overflow.

Managing Diarrhoea and loose pooh

Ongoing loose pooh really gets in the way of daily life, and is difficult to manage at any age. Carine considers the causes of loose stools in young children and teens with a careful history and dietary adjustment. Too much fructose or other sugars, food sensitivity or an increased transit time are common issues that are typically within a normal spectrum.

A close look at the nature of symptoms, what, when and how food is eaten can all help to provide pointers to manage symptoms. If loose stools are associated with growth faltering, poor appetite, persistent abdominal pain or IBS, a medical review may be suggested.

Nutriational Assessment

Treating Constipation

Carine offers a combination of toileting, food, fibre and fluid advice alongside selected probiotics and body awareness which help form and maintain new habits. Children generally respond well to praise and progress, and so positive feedback, effective praise and encouragement are necessary and valuable in managing constipation. Typically, I would address a range of constipation matters over several appointments, over the course of 1 year.

Assessing current intake, and meeting families and individual children where they are, working towards meeting needs for age group, using step by step targets.

From potty training, early-school age and in the teenage years, getting more comfortable with toileting, timing and positioning, when and where is there holding, patterns of experience.

Plant foods, wholegrains, fermented and prebiotic foods and probiotic supplements all have a role to play in supporting good elimination.

Responding to awareness of body signals, using breathwork, becoming aware of patterns of holding, tension, understanding the patterns of the bowel.

Take a Look at Diet Diversity

Holistic treatment approaches for Irritable Bowel Syndrome

IBS is a collection of symptoms rather than a condition, and with no diagnostic test available. A diagnosis is made if there is a 3 month or longer history of abdominal pain, with pain around toileting plus either constipation or loose stools. Dietary treatments for IBS are very effective for many people, and the FODMAP diet has been used successfully in adults. However, it is not evidenced for children or teenagers, and the diet itself is restrictive, difficult to follow, and may cause additional stress or indeed nutritional deficiencies for young people. Other mindful treatments, are equally successful as dietary treatment and include breath work, meditation, mindful eating, yoga and talking therapy AKA lifestyle advice. Carine’s approach to treating IBS in young people is a holistic one, including food, nutrition, diet diversity, lifestyle and supporting behaviour-change. Learning how to self-regulate and manage symptoms with awareness and diet. Dietary treatment may include single exclusions or modifications, and seeks to improve the quality of the diet, build and support the gut microbiota. A 12-week yoga programme, with breath work offers an evidence-based alternative to dietary treatment; I offer integration of the two.

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