I am a Registered Dietitian whose practice and research is focused on promoting healthy behaviours among young children (prenatally through the preschool years). My current research focuses on how aspects of the general home may impact child dietary intake and weight status. I aim to share the importance and benefits of family meals and to support parents in developing lifelong healthy habits among their young children!
Food is the one thing that we all have in common. At a bare minimum, we all have to eat to survive, but food also holds so many memories, experiences and feelings. I believe that healthy eating isn't about one nutrient or even one 'super food'; it's about variety and context, and that means something different to each of us. So pick a variety of ingredients (mostly vegetables, but some chocolate) and experiment! Not every recipe turns out, but enjoy the process. Turn off the TV (and put down your phone). Get messy. Eat the food you love. And make memories in the kitchen and around your dinner tables with the ones you love.
---
If you would like to read more about my work, click the links below:
- Is it time to re-think picky eating? Between 14-50% of parents describe their preschool-aged children as being 'picky eaters'. Dietary intake and preferences during the preschool years are characterized by slowing growth rates and children developing a sense of autonomy over their feeding and food selection.In this paper, we describe a new way to understand picky eating habits where children's acts of resistance are seen as developmentally appropriate instead of deviant. This may allow health professionals to more effectively support parents in developing healthy eating habits among children, reducing both stress around mealtimes and concerns of picky eating.
Changing the behaviours of young children requires engaging their parents. This study aimed to test the feasibility, acceptability and preliminary impact of Parents and Tots Together (PTT), a family-based obesity prevention intervention, in Canada.
Eating meals, particularly dinner, with family members has been found to be associated with improved dietary intake, lower prevalence of disordered eating behaviours, lower levels of substance abuse, and improved academic outcomes among adolescents. Limited research has examined how the frequency of family meals has changed over time. The objective of this study was to examine secular trends in family dinner frequency over a 12-year period using a large, nation-wide sample of adolescents.
Parents influence their children’s obesity risk through feeding behaviours and modelling of weight-related Parents influence their children’s obesity risk through feeding behaviours and modelling of weight-related behaviours. Little is known about how the general home environment, including parental stress, may influence children’s weight. The objective of this study was to explore the association between parenting stress and child body mass index (BMI) as well as obesity risk factors, physical activity and television (TV) viewing.behaviours. Little is known about how the general home environment, including parental stress, may influence children’s weight. The objective of this study was to explore the association between parenting stress and child body mass index (BMI) as well as obesity risk factors, physical activity and television (TV) viewing.