Kids Dig Food in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia | Alternative & holistic health service

Kids Dig Food

Locality: Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Phone: +61 1300 971 609

Address: 695 Sandgate Road 4011 Brisbane, QLD, Australia

Website: http://www.kidsdigfood.com.au

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• Medical and health
• Alternative & holistic health service
• Nutritionist

25.01.2022 So many YES’s to this! Ines, Kylie, Bonnie and I are committed to supporting parents’ relationship with food just as much as your child’s. It’s AS important and often MORE important. Are you ready to step off the dieting merry-go-round and heal your relationship with food? We’re here to help. ... Eat happy! Deb See more

25.01.2022 Who else is feeling that end of year stress creeping up? Talking with many of my clients today we are all starting to feel it a bit. The end of Term 4, kids are tired, calendar is filling up and patience is wearing thin. It can be a time when feeding challenges feel overwhelming... especially if we are concerned about well meaning advice from family and friends about our children's eating over the festive period. ... Check out our resources page for helpful information about a range of common concerns and reach out if you need some further support. Eat Happy! Kylie

24.01.2022 Why I dont believe in "kids food" Do you cook your kids separate kids friendly meals? At gatherings and BBQs do the kids get a plate of "easy" food? Do you assume your kids wont like something? Kids absolutely do need "easy" options such as bread and butter or crackers. ... But they also need to be OFFERED the food that the adults in the house enjoy. Kids can enjoy adult foods such as smoked salmon, olives and brie just as much as we do. Hands down the best way to expand your kids diet is to offer kids the food YOU eat with a few safe options mixed in. HOW you offer is also super important. We worry that if we give kids control over what they put on their plate they will always choose the easy option. Yes, sometimes they will only eat crackers or bread and this is okay. Resist the urge to say "thats enough bread, eat something else now" or even "you have to eat something before you leave the table". This can cause resistance or stress in children, damage the feeding relationship and actually make children even less likely to try new foods. It may feel like we need to "control" what our children are eating but actually we just need to be in charge of what we offer, kids will do the rest. Sometimes we forget that kids really can genuinely enjoy a big range of foods. Yes, even vegetables! Eat happy! - Bonnie

24.01.2022 This is me. Food is not just nutrition, it marks the rhythm of my day, brings me pleasure and connects me to family and friends. Following our theme of considering our own needs as parents, 2021 is the year I make sure that I meet my own needs with food.....cooking and eating food that I love! Now that's a year to look forward to! Eat happy! - Bonnie

24.01.2022 Four bread rolls... 3 kids... The fourth one is for ME! We find a way to feed the kids, no matter what! Right?... Today, I am honouring my needs as a human and prioritising feeding myself. I am taking the opportunity to prepare my own simple foods for the day, just like I do for my children. I matter too. Eat Happy! Ines

23.01.2022 Menu fatigue - what it is, and how to overcome it. AKA "What the &%$# do I cook?" AKA "I've no idea what we are having for afternoon tea!" It's December 2020. Most of us are simply happy to be still standing. The kids are getting rattier by the day. Just about every parent I talk to is exhausted from collectively the most challenging year that most of us have experienced in our lifetime. So what does this have to do with menus or fatigue?... Menu Fatigue (my definition) is exhaustion as a result of planning between 3-6 meals daily for oneself and often a family. It usually strikes when we are otherwise at a low ebb. For parents of school-aged kids, sorting out what is for a dinner or a snack seems infinitely harder in Term 4 than in Term 1! I'm sure it's not just me. There are a few things you can do to combat menu fatigue. Here are my 3 top tips: (1) Go easy on yourself. You're tired. You are doing your best. If you are managing to keep your tribe fed, no-matter how, you have already achieved a LOT! (2) Spend 2 minutes making a list of your go-to, easiest dinners and snack recipes. Aim to have 5-10 of each as a minimum. Refer to this when you are grocery shopping, or on the fly (it happens). (3) When you are feeling rested enough to do so, source inspiration from EASY, family-friendly places. Sometimes the best ideas come from the most unexpected places... a chat with a friend, a random magazine, the internet, your grandma! Our dear friends at Foost have made #3 even easier with their new e-book "101+ Fruit & Veggie snacks". We think it is perfect timing, with the school holidays about to start and parents at a low ebb in the inspiration and variety stakes. So if you need a snack refresh for the holidays, check it out! One parent said: I hate cooking, and this gave me some simple ideas I’m going to try. High praise! Take it easy, be kind to yourselves, and Eat Happy! Deb https://www.foost.com.au//101-fruit-and-veggie-snac/ref/8/

23.01.2022 The problem with sticking to only offering foods that a child will eat Often parents find themselves offering foods that they know their child will eat. This often feels like a sure way to make sure the child is fed. Sticking to this feels like it mostly works, until we come to a different challenge... it may start to get difficult to offer anything else without refusal. Ensuring that a child is fed is definitely one of several important priorities, but not the only priority.... Theres also feeding development and learning to eat. When we only offer liked or accepted foods, we unintentionally limit food exposure and opportunities for a child to work on their food learning and feeding development. It might sound obvious, but food needs to show up so that the child can use the food to learn with. Learning to eat is a very complex learned behaviour and involves our sensory system, oral motor skills and much much more. ...It takes time, no pressure, calm curious exploration, familiarity, lots of experiences, practice, skill-building... and patience from parents. Offering a usually-eaten food alongside foods that a child is still learning to eat, gives a child a better chance to meet their growing needs AND work on their food learning. Eat Happy! Ines

23.01.2022 Kids and Iron Part 3: Not getting enough? When children have a very restricted diet, it may be difficult for them to get enough iron. This may be something that has been a concern for you. Unfortunately, we cant tell if a childs iron levels are low by looking at them. The signs and symptoms of low iron and iron deficiency anaemia are many and varied and the only REAL way to tell is by a blood test. If you are unsure, its best to speak with your doctor about whether a blood... test is needed. Possible signs and symptoms that your child isnt getting enough iron can be: fatigue/weakness/sleeping for longer than usual irritability/rattiness poor appetite poor cognitive function (memory and concentration) pallor skin paler than usual dizziness or light headedness swollen or sore tongue cold hands or feet pagophagia compulsively craving or chewing ice or drinking iced beverages pica compulsively wanting to eat non-food items such as dirt Australian recommendations are that 1-8 year olds need about 7-10mg of Iron daily. However, we know that in reality kids dont eat exactly the recommended amount per day. Children are erratic eaters, some days they may not meet or exceed recommendations - this is OK. Your job is to simply OFFER iron rich foods regularly. Its your childs job to choose to eat them, or not. If your child has a long-term poor intake of these iron foods then speak with your GP about checking iron status and then seek help from an Accredited Practising Dietitian if it turns out they need more iron. An iron supplement is often needed in addition to offering iron rich foods to restore iron stores to normal. Some naturally iron-rich foods are cup of white beans have 4mg of Iron 85g of beef liver has 5mg of Iron cup of tofu, cup lentils & cup spinach all have 3mg of Iron 1 medium potato, cup kidney beans, cup of tomatoes & 85g of beef all have 2mg of Iron cup of white long grain rice, 1 slice of bread, 1 egg all have 1mg of Iron To help kids out who struggle to get enough iron, some foods are fortified with Iron (iron is added). These mainly include breads and cereals (pictured below) Some breads are fortified with iron, such as Wonder with 4.4mg per slice and Tip Top The One bread with 4.2mg per slice Iron fortified breakfast cereals such as Weet-Bix has 3mg per serve Various Iron fortified baby cereals Remember that last week we discussed how Vitamin C helps our bodies absorb iron, so offering an iron rich food at the same time as a Vitamin C rich food is helpful! Eat Happy! Kirsty Doig Internee at Kids Dig Food

23.01.2022 Deb on the Food Freedom Body Love Podcast: on feeding Neuro-Diverse Kids. I recorded this podcast episode in early December 2020 with my colleague and fellow Ellyn Satter Institute Associate program graduate, Dr Jillian Murphy, ND (Canada). In this episode, we discuss:... - How Deb started working with very picky eaters - The biggest struggles for all families when it comes to feeding our children - Why teaching kids about nutrition and health is problematic - When a big part of feeding therapy is reminding parents that their child has the ability to learn and grow - Why rigidity helps neurodiverse kids feel safe and preserve energy - How to work with that rigidity at the child’s pace - The importance of a multidisciplinary approach - Helping kids do well away from the table, affects how well they do at the table - Other types of feeding therapies for autism and why they don’t often work: pressure, contextual learning, food agendas - Why focusing on the journey is SO important when progress is slow - The difference between getting a kid to eat a certain food and teaching parents how to feed - Cutting out foods for neurodiverse kids: Yay or Nay? - Evaluating whether your child can tolerate restriction - Setting realistic expectations for progress and setting kids up for success - Coping with nutritional worries when you have a very picky/rigid eater I'd especilly love to hear if neuro-diverse families find this information helpful. Eat Happy! Deb https://podcasts.apple.com//beyond-weight-on/id1360854310

22.01.2022 On this, Early Childhood Educators Day, and EVERY day.... Take the time to THANK your Early Childhood Educators for Everything they do for your children, and your family. Eat happy!... Deb #EarlyChildhoodEducatorsDay #LoveMyECE https://youtu.be/GrmQW1s7KdE

22.01.2022 "Eat your healthy choice first!" Even though Mr 6 loves fruit, it is not always the first food he picks out to eat from his lunchbox. Sometimes he eats a biscuit, sometimes a sandwich and sometimes some cucumber. Over the course of the day, most gets eaten. Kids learn about food through experience not through being told what they "should" be eating. In fact it can do the opposite. When Mr 6 experienced "strong encouragement" to eat his "healthy" food first at school, i...t created anxiety, stress and he stopped eating fruit entirely. For some kids, encouragement is pressure. Create regular opportunities for kids to interact with all types of food in a neutral way, at their own pace. Grow it, cook it, explore it! Thankfully, Mr 6's school no longer insists that he eats his food in a certain order and fruit is back on the menu. He GENUINELY loves fruit and this great attitude will follow him into adulthood. "Healthy" is way too abstract for most adults to define, never mind children so let's keep it simple! Eat happy! - Bonnie

22.01.2022 Talking food talk... Food is different for everyone. The food you choose to eat is food that tastes good to you, food that satisfies you, and food that you look forward to eating. Have you ever had someone judge your food choice? ... Or maybe give you a not-so-appetizing comment like yuk. Have you ever been the one to make these comments?... I know I am guilty of complaining about the smell of a tuna sandwich a time or two - with a remark like ew And it doesnt stop there. For quite a while now society has told us to place foods in a healthy and unhealthy basket - and to make things worse these foods change baskets all the time. Have you ever read labels like the healthier choice or have you heard the term eating clean? (Is this to say that other people eat dirty food??) Other people and labels can directly influence what we put in our mouths. Wrong choices can leave us with feelings of guilt, shame, and judgment. So how should we be talking to children about food? How do we prevent these feelings that can lead to an unhealthy relationship with eating? Some foods are great because they give us a lot of energy for the day Some foods are great because they taste so good and they are our favorite Some foods are great because we get to have them at birthday parties Some foods are great because they nourish our bodies and are good for our brain ALL foods are great. ALL foods are on a level playing field. The labels, the comments, and the judgments all need to be tossed. Food is to be enjoyed, mealtimes are meant to be cherished and the relationship you and your child have with food comes first. Listen to what is said around your table in your home. Try and remove negative food talk from your mealtimes. Eat Happy! Kirsty Doig - Internee at Kids Dig Food

21.01.2022 A quick walk around in our new office at North Lakes. Were still working at making it homely and welcoming... but we love it! You can find location and directions here: https://kidsdigfood.com.au/locations/north-lakes/ Eat happy! Deb

21.01.2022 School Holidays have started today for those in QLD. Have you been wanting to make some changes to how your family eat together? Is now the time? Check our our blog post for some tips to make a change. Would love to hear in comments how you keep meal routines working when other routines go out the window at your house? ... Eat Happy! Kylie

20.01.2022 Real nutrition education Our wonderful Bonnie Searle has an absolutely fantastic edible plants garden thriving at her home. Bonnie kindly invited my 3 boys to venture into this lush wonderland to pick and choose the fruits and vegetables that they wanted. They looked out for the ripe and ready-to-pick tomatoes, discovered cauliflower and pulled out carrots. They really enjoyed themselves! Thank you Bonnie! Taking children into the garden can create rich learning experiences ...about: - where food comes from - what it looks like and what its called - how to grow & care for it - when its ready for picking - all about the different edible parts - how to prepare it for the family dinner table This is real useful and developmentally appropriate nutrition education for children of all ages. Calm and curious exploration of food in the garden is one of the best ways for children to learn all about foods, without the PRESSURE or expectation to consume them or do things with the foods that they are not yet ready to do. That part is key! When kids use their 5 senses to explore foods to their comfort, their bodies build familiarity and a sense of safety, making it more possible to be able to take steps towards eating them one day, in their own time. If we rush them, it may become counterproductive. How does your child go about their food learning? Eat Happy! Ins Astudillo, paediatric dietitian https://kidsdigfood.com.au/book-an-appointment/

20.01.2022 Life is busy right, not sure about everyone else but as my kids get older and do more extracurricular activities, eating dinner together is happening less, and I am missing it...surprisingly as it was often hard work when they were younger! Its got me thinking about mealtimes and how they are about so much more than the food, so much connection and conversation and relationship building happens as we share meals with others. From a simple coffee catch-up with a friend to th...e craziness that is a big familys christmas lunch, eating together and sharing conversation is meant to be enjoyed. Fighting about how many mouthfuls of veg need to be eaten really can dampen that joy...and we know it doesnt really work! Sitting down to a family meal doesnt have to be picture perfect...sometimes it might be a lavish home cooked 3 course affair, sometimes is baked beans on toast or a takeaway picked up last minute. Sometimes its fish and chips eaten off paper at the beach Please get in touch if you need some support to help your family enjoy mealtimes, to work on those connections that kids thrive on, where they learn about how to share a meal and build their confidence to try unfamiliar foods. Check out our blog for some more information about family mealtimes: https://kidsdigfood.com.au/eating-together-making-family-m/ Eat Happy! Kylie

20.01.2022 Helping Children to Like New Foods This short video by United Way summaries nicely how to help children to like new foods. It highlights that eating and enjoying a wide variety of foods is a SKILL that takes time, just like learning to read or ride a bike - this is such a helpful way to think about this! It can help us appreciate that progress occurs at the child’s pace and cannot be rushed. This video also helps us understand how pressure tends to backfire and goes on to sha...re what parents can do to support a child to learn to like new foods, without pressure. Check it out and tell us what you think! Eat Happy! Inés Astudillo, paediatric dietitian https://kidsdigfood.com.au/book-an-appointment/

20.01.2022 Happy Fathers Day! Thank you to all Fathers and all who play a fathering role for being a positive and active influence in your childrens developing relationship with food. Each time you prepare food, help your children build skills to prepare and cook food, and eat with them you make a difference!... To you we say, THANKS Eat happy! Deb and the Kids Dig Food team

20.01.2022 "Mum dont put the sandwich in my lunch box! I will have to eat it first!" - Master 4 A problem with lunch box policing and rules Master 4 generally enjoys cheese sandwich. There are some days where he eats a full sandwich. There are also some days where he may eat a little cheese sandwich or none at all. ... Like many children, when Master 4 is pressured to eat something that his body for some reason is not keen on on the day he is discouraged and naturally responds by pushing back or trying to avoid the situation all together. Pressure to eat tends to be an uncomfortable experience that goes against a childs innate sense of autonomy. Pressure to eat ends up being counterproductive and has great potential to interfere with a childs food learning, ability to learn to respond to internal appetite signals and relationship with food. By being pressured to eat a sandwich first, Master 4 has now declared that he does not like cheese sandwich! He is also getting creative about how to avoid an uncomfortable situation and is resisting me offering the food in the first place. This is disastrous for his food learning. Master 4 does not need any encouragement to eat. Like all children, he is going through his own process of learning about food and eating, just like all learning experiences in his world! When Master 4 is rightfully in charge of his eating jobs whether and how much from what I provide, the feeding dynamic just goes better and he can go about his food learning the way he knows how. I trust him. He also has no need to push foods away. He allows me to offer foods without needing to push them away building tolerance and familiarity, an important step in his food learning process. Pressure to eat almost always comes from a place of well-meaning concern, without intent to do harm. The aim of this post is to reflect on feeding dynamics and open conversation about how we might be able to do things differently, in a manner that is supportive of a childs food learning and relationship with food. Eat Happy! Ines Astudillo, paediatric dietitian https://kidsdigfood.com.au/book-an-appointment/

20.01.2022 What does eating mean to you and your family? When I sit down at to eat a meal at my grandparents place it is always well thought out, cooked from some sort of scratch, with no devices on, manners and ALWAYS dessert. I always leave feeling satisfied - not just in my belly but it fills my cup and it clears my mind. Eating in their time always took priority. Despite their hard-working attitudes and lifestyle, they always took the time and effort to feed their family in a way th...at was enjoyable and satisfying. Things are different these days. Family mealtimes can feel like they are too demanding on everyone’s time, sometimes a stressful experience with the priority not being everyone spending time together to enjoy a meal. Feeding ourselves can also be filled with anxious feelings and confusion with the amount of information out there on ‘what we should be eating.’ It can feel overwhelming and full of pressure. Eating has transformed in a way that can be unenjoyable, unsatisfying and counterproductive. We can take some inspiration from the generations before us when it comes to eating They appreciate a wide variety of foods (my grandma has enough recipe books to start her own library). They always eat with enjoyment and satisfaction, whilst creating memories with those they love. When the joy goes out of eating, nutrition suffers Ellyn Satter As always, Eat Happy, Kirsty Doig Internee at Kids Dig Food

19.01.2022 Ive been thinking a lot about pressure to eat this week. Often we pressure because we worry that this is the only way our child will eat any food or a certain type of food. Sometimes pressure is very very subtle so we have one simple question for you. Are you trying to get your child to eat or are you trying to provide a food learning opportunity The answer will let you know if you are using pressure?... ALL kids have the ability learn to enjoy a wide variety of food. Pressure stands in the way of food learning. It may help us feel in control but it usually has the effect of pushing children away from food. Even better, once we stop trying to control meals, we experience less stress. Have you stopped using pressure and noticed a shift? Eat happy! - Bonnie

19.01.2022 Who else has a wriggler? I'm relieved to share that Mr 2 is now Mr 3 and has moved past this stage but he is still a very quick eater who sometimes eats a great deal but often eats very small amounts. Rather than declaring "You can't have had enough....here have some more" I am trusting that Mr 3 knows how much he needs to grow well. I also know that he is going to make mistakes with his appetite. On days when he has not eaten enough and declares "I'm hungry!" 30 minutes ...later he gets a very gently reminder that we have already had our meal and he needs to wait for the next one. When this happens I bring the next meal forward a little. Remember, children are still learning to eat and their eating won't look like "adult" eating for quite some time. Eat happy! - Bonnie

19.01.2022 From the blog archive: Great Expectations Discover the kinds of expectations that can derail the best mealtime intentions. Eat happy! Deb ... https://kidsdigfood.com.au/great-expectations/

18.01.2022 Struggles with food learning are real Master 4.5 joined us for a taco dinner tonight... he struggles with loaded ingredients between two bits of bread or wrap or taco boat. He eats these ingredients separately no worries! Mixed is a whole other challenge. Early days, Master 4.5 started with eating plain taco boats... He then progressed to adding Greek yoghurt... After that cheese...... Tonight he REALLY wanted to do more. He pushed himself to add some mince and bits of cheese... He thoroughly enjoyed filling the taco with the mince and carefully placing the grated cheese on top. He hesitantly brought the mince filled taco boat to his mouth... closed his little eyes, opened his mouth wide, quickly closed up again and then stuck his tongue out to get just a small taste before putting the taco right back down. Okay... yes I was holding my breath as I watched! So close! But I also just carried on eating my taco haha. He proceeded to assemble a few more tacos and take similar daring tastes, but thats all he could work on today. When kids are challenged by foods or certain aspects of food, the struggle is real! If they could... they would. As adults, many of us look at eating quite simply and think its an easy, two to three steps process. You put the food in your mouth, chew and swallow it, right? Furthermore, we tend to expect kids to EAT food, and if they dont... we worry. What we know is that eating is a LEARNED BEHAVIOUR and one of the most complex tasks a human needs to coordinate! It involves our senses, oral-motor skills, multi-limb coordination & control, postural stability and more! In actual fact, children learn to eat by taking many necessary STEPS to build familiarity and a sense of safety before being able to warm up to the food to learn more and eventually eat the food. Understanding this step-by-step food learning process can be so helpful for parents to be able to look at things differently and notice the progress in a childs food learning, rather than feeling like its getting nowhere. We can then shift into a teacher role and support our childs food learning process instead. Have you noticed the progress in your childs food learning? What does it look like? Eat Happy! Ines Astudillo, paediatric dietitian https://www.kidsdigfood.com.au/book-an-appointment/

17.01.2022 How to spot diet culture Dieting is something that most of us have been involved in (maybe a little, maybe a lot). We live in a dieting culture. It is something that is totally accepted by society and perceived as normal by most people.if a friend or colleague said they were going on a diet to lose weight before summer, you probably wouldn’t have much of a reaction. ...Continue reading

17.01.2022 Tonight's post about baby bottle and microplastics... didn't go down so well!! (Sorry!) Our post tonight shared new research about baby's bottles and microplastics that offended and upset some of you, our followers. The research presented was from a legitimate study, and yes we should have included the source. We also take heed that some people were offended by the use of the term "artificial infant formula". This is a term used by health professionals, but we understand how... it might have offended. The Kids Dig Food team pride ourselves on bringing you up-to-date and evidence-based information. Although we do stand by the information presented, we agree it could have been presented better. We are going back to the drawing board on this one and hope to bring this information to you again soon, including full detail of the study referenced in a form that will be helpful rather than divisive. As always, our wish is to be a help to all families and on this occasion we missed the mark. Wishing you all a lovely friday evening and weekend! Deb, Ines, Bonnie and Kirsty

17.01.2022 We see you This one is for our many parent clients of children with special needs. We know how tough you do it. We know how much you love your kids. You matter. Your children matter. ... from the Kids Dig Food team, Deb, Ines, Bonnie & Kylie

16.01.2022 If you are concerned about the way your child’s body is growing, get your CONCERN addressed by speaking with a Non Diet Dietitian (YES, we are). And like my colleague, Fiona Sutherland from The Mindful Dietitian suggests, come along without your kids while we work out (a) if you have anything to be worried about, or if your child’s body is simply experiencing natural growth and (b) if it’s going to be in their best interest (or not) to join you at appointments with the Dietit...ian. Our aim is to support a child’s positive relationship with food and their body, no matter what their size and shape. EVERY kid deserves to feel good about the body they are in. Happy Sunday. Eat happy! Deb

16.01.2022 How to grow a tree. There are many reasons why children refuse to try a new (or old) food. Sometimes it is just a short stage, sometimes it lasts for years. When we work with parents in clinic we spend a great deal of time on stages 1 and 2. ... Skipping these crucial trust building stages is like trying to plant a tree in shallow rocky ground. Time and time again we see that once parents step back and genuinely trust that their child is capable of pushing themselves forward to eat, we see progress. Like growing a tree, progress can be painfully slow. Sometimes it doesnt look like progress is happening at all. When we look closer though, we may one day be able to see those tiny little buds emerging. They may not look much like leaves or branches yet but we trust in the process of growth. How are your trees growing? Eat happy! - Bonnie Want to make a start but dont know how? Our Feed Your Picky Eater webinar is a great place to start! See below for details https://events.humanitix.com/august-2020-parent-webinar-fee

15.01.2022 Kids and Iron Part 2: Vegetarian & Vegan Diets Last week we talked about the importance of Iron in childrens diet and tips on how to introduce the hard to eat MEAT to children as a good source of Iron. For all of our fellow vegetarian and vegans, this wouldnt have been so helpful - so, this post is all about you Although our bodies absorb Iron best from meat - it is not the only food that provides us with Iron and it IS possible to have adequate Iron without eating meat.... If your child is vegetarian or vegan OR your child is struggling with eating meat - here is a list of some other foods high in Iron You can allow your child to start sneaking up on these foods if they dont already eat them. Show them how you eat these foods, join your kids in the washing, putting away, cooking and preparing process and add them to your family meals. Beans/legumes: lentils, beans (all types), chickpeas, beans, tofu and eggs Grains: wholegrain cereals such as oats or muesli, wholemeal bread, brown rice, quinoa Nuts/seeds: pistachios, cashews, almonds, hemp, flax, chia (smooth nut pastes are safe for babies and young children who have not learned to properly chew and swallow whole nuts) Vegetables/fruits: leafy greens (e.g. spinach), broccoli, dried fruits A tip because our bodies find it a bit trickier to absorb the Iron from these foods we can help it out a little. Vitamin C helps absorb Iron, so we can pair Vitamin C and Iron foods together to get the most bang for our buck! (e.g. a small glass of orange juice with tofu stir-fry, kiwi fruit with wholemeal toast for breakfast, or capsicum and egg for a snack) If you do follow a vegetarian or vegan diet and have any recipes with any of these Iron foods please share in the comments below! Next week I will talk about what we can do when we know our childs intake of Iron has been poor for a long period of time or you are concerned about Iron intake. Eat Happy! Kirsty Doig KDF Intern

14.01.2022 Family style meals: We often talk to our clients about serving meals family style. What does this mean, it can look like this: My kids are still learning like all the ingredients in one of my husband and my favourite meals: Vietnamese lemongrass chicken noodle salad.... Rather than cook them something else or turn dinner into a fight...or worse still...not include it on our menu, we put the ingredients separately on the table. This gives them an opportunity to see/smell/touch the unfamiliar foods which helps them get ready to give them a taste. Not all meals are as easy to serve family style, would love to hear anything that works well at your place! Eat Happy! Kylie

14.01.2022 Need some school holiday entertainment inspiration? How about getting the kids to make a herb garden, bake a cake or create a lunch box menu plan. The blog post below list some other ideas if you want to get out of the house! The best food learning is often done away from the table. Eat Happy!... Kylie See more

14.01.2022 Do you worry that your child is over-doing condiments like sugar, honey and tomato sauce. Heres a different take on it. Giving children the opportunity to choose how much condiments to use helps them feel safe and to learn. Over time they usually wont need to use as much and will settle down with their eating of them, because you didnt make a big deal of it. Eat happy! Deb

14.01.2022 A quick walk around our new office at North Lakes. Were still working at making it homely and welcoming... but we love it! You can find location and directions here: https://kidsdigfood.com.au/locations/north-lakes/ Eat happy! Deb

13.01.2022 As parents we all have bad days when feeding our kids. We cant all do everything right and definitely cant be perfect...actually life might be pretty boring if we were! Same for our kids , they will make mistakes when it comes to eating, sometimes they will eat too little and sometimes too much, allowing them to make those mistakes is a huge part of learning to eat well for life. Eat Happy... Kylie See more

13.01.2022 Bonnie talks about how we parents matter too! We can we enjoy the meals we like and make it work for our kids by offering... deconstructed meals! Eat Happy! Ines

13.01.2022 A little garden magic When Mr 6 is having a hard time regulating his big emotions I often invite him to join me in the veggie garden to see if we can find anything that needs picking. He finds this incredibly soothing and investigates the garden, looking for native bees on flowers, spiders and ripe veggies. His favourite has been the green bean plant. If you are going to grow anything this year, make it green beans. ... The seeds are cheap as chips to buy...... Get a large pot (plastic is fine), a bag of potting mix (veggie mix if possible) and some sticks for the beans to climb up. Push some beans into the soil, water and wait for the magic to happen. This plant grows SO fast! As a bonus, my kids thought the raw crunchy beans were delicious. Raw veggies are often more attractive because they are crunchy, sometimes very sweet and generally more predictable. The biggest bonus of growing veggies is that it sparks genuine curiosity and THIS is what pushes kids forwards with food. Even if your little ones show no interest in tasting, the experience is feeding into their bank of "positive things that happen about food". We call this experiential learning and it very very powerful. Who else has been experiencing garden magic? Show me your veggies! Eat happy! - Bonnie

13.01.2022 New Blog Post! If you have ever been concerned about the amount of food that your child is eating - whether it’s enough or too much - this one is for you! How much should my child eat? https://kidsdigfood.com.au/how-much-should-my-child-eat/... Eat Happy! Ines Astudillo, paediatric dietitian

12.01.2022 Can you spot pressure to eat?

12.01.2022 Kids sweets and treats This short video by United Way helps us understand why children have a preference for sweetness and how parents can support children to manage sweet foods. It goes on to explore how overly restricting sweets may lead to children developing disordered eating behaviour such as sneaking foods or binge eating. It also goes into how Satter’s Division of Responsibility in Feeding, can be a helpful framework for approaching feeding, so that kids can learn to m...anage things like sweets and treats. Check it out and tell us what you think! Eat Happy! Inés Astudillo, paediatric dietitian https://kidsdigfood.com.au/book-an-appointment/

12.01.2022 What does food learning look like in your house? This is learning about the volatile compounds in onions. Learning about food can take many forms other than the food showing up on a dinner plate and they all help children become familiar and confident with new foods. Kids (and most adults too) learn best in a no pressure environment so try and leave the eat more veggies agenda at the door. Here are some other food learning suggestions:... - Helping with grocery shopping - Fresh food markets can often provide a greater variety of new food to look at, especially if they have butcher, fishmongers etc. - Visiting community and public gardens, Mt Cootha Botanic Gardens and South Bank in Brisbane both have great kid friendly vegetable gardens to explore. - Sensory play with food, making edible paints, vegetable stamps etc. - Cooking classes or workshops - Fruit picking- strawberry season is happening now. Please share any other ideas! Eat Happy! Kylie

11.01.2022 Graduation Congratulations to Kirsty! Introducing... Kirsty Doig, Dietitian! Its not every day that you finish a tertiary Degree, but last Friday the Kids Dig Food intern Kirsty did just that! Kirsty has spent her last subject placement of her Bachelor of Nutrition & Dietetics degree with our team, helping behind the scenes with organising content, updating an online course, work shadowing in our clinics and experiencing a taste of the life as a Paediatric Dietitian.... The pic on the left is Kirstys final virtual meeting with me (Deb) on completion of her placement. Kirsty is incredibly passionate about working with kids and families, and we know she has a bright future ahead of her in Nutrition & Dietetics. We are pleased to say that Kirsty will be continuing on at least to the end of 2020 as an informal KDF intern so youll see her posting on Facebook and also hopefully Instagram in the coming weeks and months. Congratulations Kirsty!! Eat happy! From Deb, Ines, Bonnie & Kylie

10.01.2022 Because sometimes we need to help ourselves before we can help our kids... If you have a chequered history with food and eating, then this may be just what you need. Taking time to learn to feed YOURSELF with love and good sense will help you become a better feeder. Our eating and our food history DOES have an impact on how we feed our kids. ... The Ellyn Satter Institute has just released the latest in the Feeding with Love and Good Sense booklet series... this one is for the grown ups. It is highly recommended reading. Eat happy! Deb https://www.ellynsatterinstitute.org//feeding-yourself-wi/

10.01.2022 In case you needed a little reminder today... Eat happy! Deb

09.01.2022 WHY do we eat what we eat? Have you ever thought about why you choose to eat the foods you do? Is it because you love the taste? Because it’s what’s available?... Because it will satisfy a craving, or you want to indulge? Because it makes you feel good? OR do you eat foods because you think you SHOULD? not because you particularly want to Foods never taste as good when it comes with a dusting of ‘should’. Sometimes we get a ‘should’ from ourselves, sometimes from others. And despite what we may read or hear.we know there is no ONE right way to eat, because many happy and healthy people eat very differently. What works for one person may not work for another and that is okay. What we choose to eat is personal only you have your taste buds and only you know how much time you have to prepare meals and grocery shop - plus a bunch of other factors that influence what we eat. What you choose to eat will also be everchanging as your life changes. I have just begun my career as a dietitian, and I have heard people stating they are eating foods they don’t necessarily like because they think they SHOULD a lot more than what I’d thought I would I’ve also learnt how this impacts their eating relationship. If we have a dusting of ‘should’ on foods we eat, there might also be a serve of guilt we feel when we don’t eat what we told ourselves we should. And of course, we will find it harder to eat if the only reason we are eating is because we think we should, and we get minimal enjoyment or satisfaction from it. Guilt has no place in anyone’s diet. We can think about this when teaching little ones to eat. Children don’t need to be told to eat somethingthey need to want to and this will happen in their own time. This will mean for a more bright and enjoyable food journey, not one that makes them feel pressured to eat. That pressure may come from parents and carers in their younger years, but then it may come from themselves and others around them in later years. They will establish a healthier eating relationship if they are eating for reasons other than because they have been told they should, or they think they should. Eat Happy! Kirsty Doig Internee at Kids Dig Food

07.01.2022 "I want to do it MYSELF!" Parents everywhere have experienced this budding sense of independence in our toddlers and pre-schoolers! A sense of agency is so incredibly important for our kids and mealtimes are a the perfect place to support this. With guided choices (parent chooses whats for dinner) we can let children serve themselves and decide what to eat out of what is on offer.... As clinicians we see time and time again that when a childs sense of agency is supported at mealtimes that they really do "initiate their own learning". It just may not look how we think it SHOULD look. Remember learning to eat like an adult is a process that takes years - dont rush it :) Eat happy! - Bonnie

06.01.2022 Is your child a grazer? If your kids are constantly raiding the fridge for snacks or begging for food between meals then this blog is for you! Deb offers solutions for a few common scenarios:... - The time-poor family - Snack distractions - The always hungry or never hungry kid Check it out and tell me what you think. https://kidsdigfood.com.au/is-your-child-a-grazer/ Eat Happy! Ins

06.01.2022 Finish everything on your plate, or no dessert Did you grow up with the finish your plate household dinner time rule? I grew up with this rule and it really dragged out dinner time most evenings. I remember staring at vegetables wishing they would disappear and despite feeling very full, pushing myself to eat every last crumb. Luckily for my parents, I was a MASSIVE sweet tooth and 90% of the time I would eat just about anything and everything to get a bowl of ice cream ...after. Thats not to say we didnt have our fair share of mealtime standoffs. Foods that I loved were treats that I only received when I accomplished something (getting an award at school, finishing dinner, winning a swimming race) OR on a special occasion. Growing up, I remember scoffing down all the cakes, lollies and chocolates at birthday parties as quickly as I could with regret shortly after. When these foods were available to me, I would fill up on them to the point I felt unwell. I also remember savouring treats for weeks, sometimes even months. I would store them in my room and eat them one tiiiiny bit at a time. Even worse than finishing my treat would be finishing it before my sibling. There were a lot of competitions we had on who could savour it the longest - the thought of having to watch each other continue to enjoy our week-old lollipop was for some reason unbearable?? My parents had the best intentions and only wanted me to finish my plate because they wanted me to be well-nourished and knew that I would do so if it meant I got dessert after. However, it left some not so normal eating habits. For example, I would hide food and overeat favourite foods when they were available to me. I was not learning to like different foods I was just forcing myself to eat them. Eating rules have sometimes been a part of the way families have eaten for generations. However, that doesnt mean they are always right. When you trust your child to learn their stopping place and accept their mistakes with eating, they become a competent eater. Using foods as a reward for eating other food is an unhelpful parenting strategy. Children can enjoy foods they love from time to time as part of a healthy diet. Restricting and using these foods as bribes will only make them more desirable, then when children are left to their own devices they will not know how to sensibly manage these foods in a relaxed way. Teach children a healthy way to enjoy their most loved foods and assure them they will be offered again soon. Keep mealtimes enjoyable everyone. Wonderful things start to happen when you let go of unhelpful meal time rules. Eat Happy Kirsty Doig Internee at Kids Dig Food

06.01.2022 Brisbane parents this one is for you! Eat happy! - Bonnie

06.01.2022 Food for thought...... What happens when we praise a child for eating? How do they feel on a day that eating doesn't go so well for them and they don't get praise? Real food learning and acceptance comes about when kids are genuinely motivated to eat a food. External motivators like praise and rewards may work in the short term but aren't that effective long term. ... How to get that real intrinsic motivation? Curiosity! When children are able to relax around food they get curious. Curiosity sparks food learning. If your children is resisting foods ask yourself if they have been experiencing pressure? Do they have full autonomy when it comes to what they put in their mouth? Children CAN genuinely enjoy nutritious food, ,we just need to give them the space to approach it and learn about it at their own pace. Eat happy! - Bonnie

06.01.2022 The Feed Your Picky Eater [without going crazy] parent webinar is on TONIGHT, MONDAY 17th August 2020. So if you feel like you need a GPS to navigate feeding your kids and managing picky eating, then think of this as your personal invitation to join us. Attend the workshop from your couch with a cuppa (or something stronger) in hand!... If any one of these feeding challenges have left you scratching your head, we know the Webinar will be a game-changer... A kid who wants to graze or raid the pantry all the time, and then wont eat at meals. A kid who you worry eats too much or too little. A kid who refuses to eat what you prepare. A younger kid who cant seem to move on from formula or milk bottles. An older kid who is still ultra-picky and doesnt seem to be improving. A kid who refuses to eat dinner, but then asks for food at bedtime. and more... A recording will be made available after the workshop if for any reason you cant join us live. You have a full month to access this recording as many times as you wish. We DONT promise miracles - it takes time for fussy eaters to learn to eat a variety of foods. We DO teach you how to help your children get there without anxiety and stress, leaving your kids with a positive attitude even towards food they dont yet eat. Wed love you to join us. Eat happy! Deb and Kylie eat.https://events.humanitix.com/august-2020-parent-webinar-fee

06.01.2022 Is sugar addictive for kids? Many parents worry that their child is "addicted to sugar". Parents describe kids who constantly ask for sweet foods, have arguments about when they get to eat it, cant get enough of it at parties or sneak it from hidden places in the pantry. Have you ever surprised your child in the middle of a midnight snack of forbidden foods or found wrappers hidden under the bed? These are all tell-tale signs that your child is developing an unhealthy relati...onship with the sweet stuff. So are sweet foods addictive? The idea of food as an addictive substance just doesnt wash with me, and as Maryann Jacobsen RD so eloquently puts it in her article: "If you believe its not possible for people to eat certain foods in moderation, it wont be possible." For more information on the idea of food being addictive (including sugar) or not, I do love Maryann Jacobsen RDs blog article with research links here: https://maryannjacobsen.com/5-truths-about-food-addiction-/ So lets say for arguments sake that sugar ISNT addictive... How then do we support kids to learn to manage and enjoy highly palatable, good tasting, high fat and high sugar foods in a relaxed way without letting them take over the menu? I love this little "Kids Sweets and Treats" video attached, which was created by some of our colleagues in the US. You can also read more about managing "forbidden foods" in this article by Ellyn Satter here: https://www.ellynsatterinstitute.org//39-using-forbidden-/ Let me know: Does this help you decide what is the next step to take to help your child develop a better relationship with sweet foods? Eat happy! Deb

05.01.2022 How do kids learn to like a variety of food? By parents insisting on tastes/bites? Negotiating? Being coerced or forced to eat it?... No. Researcher, Birch and her team discovered that there are 2 key components - exposure to food (... and never giving up) AND autonomy to decide when they are ready to do more with it. Reference: Birch LL, Johnson SL, Fisher JO. Children’s eating: the development of food-acceptance patterns. Young Child. 1995;50:71-78. In our clinical experience, even children who present as picky, extremely picky, kids with sensory challenges, kids with ASD and kids with ARFID have the capacity to become competent eaters in this way. It is gentle, respectful, based on trust. This is Ellyn Satter's Division of Responsibility in Feeding. Want to know more? We're here to help. Deb

05.01.2022 Dessert. We love it. And as parents we also hate it. Why? Because it is often the pawn in the battle between parents and kids over eating healthy foods. Unfortunately we know from research that using dessert as a bargaining chip to get kids to eat their dinner only increases desire for dessert foods and decreases desire for dinner foods. ... Read our blog article to find out how to include dessert in an enjoyable way without the battles. Eat happy! Deb https://kidsdigfood.com.au/im-full-mummy-can-i-have-some-i/

04.01.2022 Being a parent/carer is a hard job, we dont always get it right, we dont always know which way we are supposed to be heading and sometimes we get lost and cant find our way. Feeding kids can be a tricky part of that, especially if they dont always behave as we expect... but are our expectations maybe part of the problem? Have a read of the article below about when our expectations maybe adding to the stress of mealtimes. https://kidsdigfood.com.au/great-expectations/... Eat Happy! Kylie

04.01.2022 Weve MOVED! Welcome to our NEW North Lakes office location - Office Suite 4, 8/23 Discovery Drive, North Lakes. Kylie and I are really excited to welcome client families to our new, dedicated clinic space from tomorrow, Monday 31st August 2020. Weve got a bit more decorating to do, like pictures for the walls, but its coming together nicely! Qld Health directives for health practitioners are changing again to ensure everyones safety during this time of increased vigilanc...e with the COVID-19 pandemic. We will be in touch soon regarding what that means for our clients. As always, we are encouraging our client families to consider Telehealth, especially if they feel it will be difficult to maintain social distancing. Stay safe everyone and Eat Happy! Deb

03.01.2022 How I started to learn about egg yolk. I am still learning to like egg yolk. Every time I go to a Cafe and see beautiful options that include poached eggs I never order them. Theres something about egg yolk that makes me gag. It all changed with a breakfast burger. I spotted it arriving at someone elses table and it looked glorious! EVEN with poached egg hanging out of it. ... I had made a decision. I was going to stop missing out and being restricted at cafes. I was going to learn to eat egg yolk. Like with our children, this is a process and I had to take baby steps. I dismantled the burger, removed the egg and put the tiniest smudge of runny yolk on a large dollop of hollandaise. Mmmmm so far so good. The next step was a slightly larger smudge on a piece of bacon. Still okay. I felt safe enough to put some of the egg yolk back in the burger and eat. I didnt eat all the egg yolk and I still cant say I love it but it was a positive experience that I will try again. Importantly I didnt eat the egg because it is good for me, or because someone wanted me to or because it makes me strong or smart. I did it because I was curious enough about the taste and really really wanted that bacon, spinach and hollandaise combination. I had to do it at my own pace and our children are EXACTLY the same. Providing kids with ongoing opportunities to try new foods but without any expectation that they might taste is the key. What are you still learning to like? Eat happy! - Bonnie

02.01.2022 Kids and Iron. Iron is a key nutrient for young children & infants growth and development. In particular, it helps transport oxygen to the brain, which is important for brain development. A good source of iron is MEAT. I am sure many of you are aware that meat is one of those tricky foods children find difficult to learn how to eat. ... As adults, we have forgotten that meat is a hard food to chew. It is a hard mechanical food that requires a mature style of chewing called a rotary chew. On top of this, meat is also very UNPREDICTABLE - it comes in all shapes, textures, tastes, and smells! So, how can we allow our children to learn how to eat meat?? 1. Strengthen jaw muscles and practice moving food around in their mouth using their tongue chewing on hard foods like carrot or celery (always remember to supervise) 2. Once you recognise them showing interest, and are calmDEMONSTRATE show your kids how to tear it, chop it, chew it 3. The more opportunities to learn the better! Offer regularly, different kinds of meat try not to fall into the trap of only serving chicken nuggets and sausages and then have a case of mealtime boredom 4. Serve with safe foods or sauce for something enjoyable and familiar 5. Involve your kids in cooking and serving meat a pressure-free way to learn about meat Remember that learning is slowstop and notice progress as much as you can! Have a read of the blog post A meaty question - Why wont my child eat meat for more tips! https://kidsdigfood.com.au/a-meaty-question-why-wont-my-chi Next week I will talk about getting iron in when eating a vegetarian/vegan diet. Eat Happy! Kirsty Doig Internee

02.01.2022 Happy NAIDOC week, this year's theme is Always Was, Always Will Be. NAIDOC week is a time to celebrate the history, culture and achievements of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples. There are events nationwide, check them out at https://www.naidoc.org.au/. ... If you love a good cooking show, NITV have a selection about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander peoples food culture and cuisine, https://www.sbs.com.au/ondemand/channels/nitv Artwork: Shape of Land by Tyrown Waigana Image Courtesy of NAIDOC.org.au. Eat Happy! Kylie

01.01.2022 Just sharing our lunch box inspiration album. Some great simple ideas. Another week of school lunches in QLD before holidays. Thinking of those parents in Victoria still homeschooling, hope you all get back to having to pack lunches soon! Eat Happy! Kylie

01.01.2022 Progress at the child’s pace I had a worry moment... and I almost let my worry get in the way of my 4.75yo food learning progress. I am a parent and human. I truly believe we are wired to worry for our kids. But I know that sometimes my worry is not appropriate. ... What helps me when I worry, is to say it out loud to another adult. So I did... I said out loud to Master 4.75’s dad... will he eat another plain taco tonight? It helped me get on with our family dinner. The next thing that happened was that Master 4.75 loaded up his taco with mince and cheese... and took a bite... and another... and another! He then also helped himself to other separate ingredients and this went on until he was done. 3 months ago I shared a taco story that highlighted how struggles with eating are real. I shared how Master 4.5 at the time, enjoyed loading up his taco but was unable to take more steps towards eating it, other than a small taste. 3 months later, I have been able to witness Master 4.75’s progress with his food learning, at his own pace. He was completely oblivious to this! He was just doing what he was ready to do, in his own time. This is possible when we create an environment that supports a child’s intrinsic drive and determination to do things for themselves... this includes eating. In order for children to do well with eating, their environment needs to support their: Autonomy Relatedness Competence To Allow... Curiosity and Confidence With eating. (Cormack 2020) Satter’s Division of Responsibility in Feeding gives us a framework to create an environment that nurtures a child’s innate and intrinsic drive to do just that. If you would like to learn more, get in touch with us. Eat Happy! Inés Astudillo, paediatric dietitian, mum and human