English
العربية
Français
Español
Nutrition and Growth
Growth is a natural biological process. Growth depends on many factors including nutrition, hormone balance, and what is inherited from the family, and it can be affected by the presence of a chronic disease or disorder. How nutrition is received over time may change in children with SNI. Some will eat by mouth for years while others will never have the ability to do so. Some families are faced with decisions about whether or not to introduce a feeding tube as part of their child’s nutrition plan.
Your Team:
An interdisciplinary specialist who helps manage the medical, social and emotional challenges of complex and/or long-term care.
A specialist in diet and nutrition, both in proactively building a dietary plan and in treating illness related to malnutrition.
A medical specialist in the diagnosis and treatment disorders of the endocrine glands and hormones.
A medical specialist in the diagnosis and treatment of the stomach and intestines.
A specialist whose aim is to improve the quality of life of their patients over the course of their illness regardless of stage, by relieving pain and other symptoms of that illness.
A medical professional who practices general medicine.
A medical specialist in the use of medical imaging (x-ray, MRI, CT, PET) procedures to diagnose injuries and diseases.
A therapist who can assess speech, language, cognitive-communication, and oral/feeding/swallowing skills as well as provide therapies and treatments to address any issues.
Your child’s primary physician will monitor weight compared to body length as an indicator of sufficient calorie intake. A dietician can recommend diet changes or supplements. An endocrinologist can assess problems that alter growth. A speech therapist can review techniques to make diet by mouth safer and, with a radiologist, assess swallowing. A gastroenterologist and palliative care or complex care clinician can help guide decisions about ways to deliver nutrition.