“D” Professionals

Dietitian

Dieticians are food and nutrition experts. They understand the different food groups and what children need to grow into healthy adults. Some children with special needs do not eat well. For example, some children with autism only eat specific types of foods. Other children with special needs may be over-weight or even obese because getting enough exercise is difficult. Having a dietician monitor a child’s diet and make suggestions on how to improve this diet is highly recommended. Specifically, dieticians can help parents with:

• Choosing the best possible diet for their children;
• Choosing food alternatives for children who may not like certain types of foods (for example, some children with autism do not like to eat crunchy foods);
• Choosing food alternatives for children who may have serious food allergies;
• Choosing healthy snacks;
• Making sure the child is eating a healthy and well-balanced diet.

To learn about the difference between a dietician and a nutritionist, please visit module 3 of the birth to six part of this course (Fig. 1).

Figure 1. A boy eating

In British Columbia the Dial-a-Dietitian service provides families and service providers with information about choices in healthy eating. This service also gives parents and service providers a place to find out where to go for counseling regarding food and nutrition issues.