1. Everything you ever wanted to
know about your child's nutrition...
but were afraid to ask!
David Levine MD
Pediatrics
Summit Medical Group

2. "Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants."

3. Food and Family

4. Nutrition
Prenatal
-extremely important
-you don't fix things with 9 mths of healthy
eating after a lifetime of bad

5. Newborn/Infant
-breast is best
-but then there is reality

6. Introduction of complementary foods
-no right or wrong way to start
-we all prefer sweets
-some evidence to support meat early (iron)
-not before 4 mths (?allergy)
Solids (finger foods) start with pincer grasp (9-
10mths)
-baby led weaning?

7. One Year
-switch to whole milk?
-dairy (yogurt, cheese)>>milk
-ok to continue breast
-ever expanding diet

8. Toddlers
-food rules
-options/menu
-don't reward with bad
food for eating good food

9. -eating after the toddler period is determined
very much by this developmental period and
how you interact with the child
-are YOU picky?
-anxious about your wt?
-dieting?

10. BMI
-body mass index (wt for ht)
-measured after 3 years of age
-healthy weight/overweight/obese/morbidly
obese
-a child who is overweight/obese at 7 years of
age if likely to have weight problems as an
adult
-not a guarantee

11. To organic or not to organic, that is the question.

12. -less pesticides
-better for you?
-more expensive, or is it?
-the type of animal you eat may be less
important than what THAT animal ate while
it was alive

14. grass vs. corn = natural vs. unnatural?

15. the science
-omega 6:3 ratio should be roughly 1:1
- grass fed is 1:1
- corn fed is 14:1
-heart disease risk? cancer risk?
-THERE IS A DIFFERENCE!

16. Vegetarianism
-vitamins can make this a non-issue in the US
-should consult with a trained nutritionist to
insure that there are no gaps
- i.e. vit B12, fatty acids, iron
-vegetarian vs vegan (too restrictive for child)
-leaner bodies, probably will live longer and
healthier lives

17. Beef is Bad!
-especially commercially produced
- E. Coli 0157:H7
-In and Out Burger (1980's)
-byproducts fed to animal include bits from the
same species
- cannibalism
- mad cow disease

18. Reading is fundamental...

19. Antibiotics

20. - overuse of ABX leads to resistance
- superbugs
- MRSA
- E. Coli
- all promoted and approved by your
government and the FDA/USDA

21. What's a parent to do?

24. FOOD = HEALTH
- top causes of death, most are food related
- heart disease
- cancers

25. -we all want want is best for our kids
-so why do we place so little care on what they
eat?
-why do we not trust our own instincts when it
comes to food?
- internet? fad diets? mistrust of MD's?
- lack of education/information from MD's?

26. Do we need these?

27. Maybe.

28. - why does BK and McD's cost less than real
food?
- corn subsidies
- business invades science (remember
tobacco?)
-lack of real oversight
-lack of caring

29. Obesity is the new smoking
-it will cost us billions
-trying lots of different methods
-are we missing the real culprits?

31. Prevention always trumps treatment.

32. -harder than it looks
-requires commitment
-watch TV, or play
-priorities!

33. What to do?
- teach your kids
- take them food shopping
- cook with them
- microwaving is NOT cooking!
-your job is to provide, their's is to eat
-young children can adjust their intakes, but
cannot choose a well-balanced diet

34. -aim for 3 meals/day (age appropriate)
-avoid sodas and teas
- water
- 100% juice (in moderation)
- milk (no more than 16 oz, low fat unless
12-24 mths - debate)
-routine use of vitamins not necessary
NO HIGH FRUCTOSE CORN SYRUP

35. Don't do this!

36. -EAT WITH YOUR KIDS!
-don't get caught up in percentiles if your kids
is happy and energetic
-gaining wt on bad food is worse than being
skinny or stable on healthy food
-petition your school and elected officials for
better food

37. It isn't easy, but it is worth it