We provide nutrition services on both an outpatient and inpatient basis, depending on our patients’ needs.
Outpatient Nutrition Counseling
One-on-one counseling with a registered dietitian is available with a physician’s referral. Nutrition counseling may be covered by insurance, but families should check with their child’s insurance provider to confirm coverage. Our nutrition consultations may include meal planning, nutrition assessments, monitoring tools, growth evaluations and child/family nutrition education. We help families treat common conditions in children, such as:
- Constipation
- Food allergies/intolerance
- General nutrition
- Picky eating
- Poor weight gain/growth and malnutrition
- Tube feeding assessments
Nutrition is also a key component of a number of other conditions a child may have. Our registered dietitians provide nutrition services as part of a multidisciplinary team in many CHOC specialty clinics and programs, including:
Inpatient Nutrition Services
Our dietitians are an important part of a child’s care team while he or she is staying with us in the hospital. We provide comprehensive nutrition services for patients of all ages according to medical need. These services include:
- Screening patients for nutritional risks
- Assessing nutritional needs and making recommendations on how to meet them
- Making recommendations for infant feedings, including breast milk, formula or enteral/tube feeding products
- Managing the care of patients receiving parenteral nutrition (IV nutrition)
- Providing nutrition education and diet instructions for families.
Healthy Lifestyle Classes
Nutrition, physical activity and behavior choices are very important when it comes to a child’s health. At CHOC Children’s, we work closely with children and their families to develop healthy lifestyles and prevent serious conditions such as obesity, diabetes and heart disease. Learn more about our nutrition and lifestyle classes.
Because nutrition is one of the most important factors in a baby’s health, CHOC Children’s provides lactation services to mothers who wish to breastfeed or pump while their baby is in the hospital.
