Pediatric Culinary Medicine: Integration of Nutrition and Stress Reduction for Children

What is Pediatric Culinary Medicine? 

• Growing field 
• Takes nutritional science and evidence-based lifestyle medicine and translates it to practical skills  
• Empowers patients and clinicians to collaborate for wellness and disease prevention 
• Trauma informed strength-based approach 
• Innovative and engaging way to teach patients and their families evidence- based stress buster strategies in the clinical setting that can easily be implemented in their own daily life routines 

Adverse childhood and community experiences…occur in the household, community, and environment and can result in toxic stress 

• Strongly associated, in a dose-response fashion, with many of the most common, serious, and costly health conditions in the United States including diabetes, cancer, heart disease, and substance use 
• Detectable as early as infancy and can emerge even in late adolescence…may manifest as disordered eating, sleep disruption, developmental delay, learning difficulties, complaints of somatic pain, increased engagement in high-risk health behaviors, depression, and anxiety 
• Stress during the COVID pandemic Parental stress during the pandemic likely had an effect on child feeding during the pandemic related to changes in family life and routines 

Pediatric Medicine’s Collaborative Approach 

• Assesses the Stages of Change  
• Motivational interviewing and set up supportive follow up schedules  
• Patients’ next steps are based on the most important chief complaints/priorities of the patient. 

Pediatric Culinary Medicine Practical strategies 

• Clinicians shift away from “diet and exercise” culture, knowing how we talk about our bodies and food matters. 
• Using the 24- hour recall history, we help families add nutrition to their existing flavor preferences. 
• Teach families strategies of inviting children to grow in curiosity. 
• Invite children into the kitchen to cook alongside parents 
• Cultivate the habit of the family meal