Nutritional management

Nutritional support, education and advice

A specialist pediatric dietician with experience in childhood diabetes should be available to provide advice to parents and young people as soon as possible after diagnosis to promote a secure and supportive relationship Simple advice should be given at the first meeting followed by more detailed education in later weeks Education should be individualized and appropriate for the age and maturity of the child to help engage the child in active learning Advice should be available to the other care givers, e.g. extended family, schoolteachers, babysitters The dietician should be part of the children’s multidisciplinary diabetes care team Dietary messages throughout the team must be consistent

The dietician will be expected to

• Take a dietary history including

• Pre-existing family dietary habits, traditions and beliefs
• The child’s usual appetite, food intake, energy and carbohydrate distribution, mealtimes
• The child’s daily activities including the impact of nursery/school/college/work and exercise schedules

• Give consistent diabetes education
• Promote a healthy lifestyle