Infant & Toddler Forum

Citation

(2007), "Infant & Toddler Forum", Nutrition & Food Science, Vol. 37 No. 1. https://doi.org/10.1108/nfs.2007.01737aab.003

Infant & Toddler Forum

Infant & Toddler Forum

There is a new educational resource available to you and your colleagues on infant and toddler (children aged 1-3 years) nutrition and feeding.

Recent government initiatives have increased the pressure on health and childcare professionals to offer high quality, evidence-based, guidance to parents on how to feed their children.

While there is an abundance of advice for new mothers on feeding their newborn babies, this is in stark contrast to the dearth of information once the child has been weaned. Parents are rarely given advice about healthy eating for toddlers, and often left unguided to cope with issues such as the introduction of new foods, food refusal, allergies, and intolerance. Health and childcare professionals also often feel ill equipped to offer guidance in this area.

The Infant & Toddler Forum brings together a multi-disciplinary team of experts and practitioners who share a common professional interest in infant and child health, growth, and nutrition. A key goal of the Forum is to improve the access of healthcare professionals to reliable, evidence-based nutritional information relevant to their practice, which will equip them to advise and support the parents of infants and young children.

The educational programme of the Forum includes:

Web site

www.infantandtoddlerforum.org is a great source of information for healthcare professionals. Visit the web site to download factsheets, articles, and useful publications. Healthcare professionals can also register to receive regular education and event updates.

Factsheets

The factsheets are designed to be practical, working tools for health visitors, nursery nurses and other healthcare professionals who interact regularly with toddlers and their parents. Each factsheet contains a summary of the key learning points, a discussion of the issues and a guidance for parents' section that can be photocopied and used to complement face-to-face advice. The series will cover the four main areas of:

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  Healthy eating for toddlers.

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  How toddler development impacts on food choice and nutrition.

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  Growth and development of toddlers.

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  Common nutritional and eating problems in toddlers.

Six factsheets have now been published. Visit the web site to download for free and/or to order hardcopies. A further three Factsheets will be published in autumn 2006. Make sure you and your colleagues register on the web site to receive updates so you do not miss out.

Study Days

These are one day meetings for health visitors and nursery nurses, which aim to develop understanding of the topical issue of toddler nutrition and are accredited by the British Dietetic Association and The Royal College of Nursing.

Study Day discussion topics will include iron deficiency anaemia and other micronutrient deficiencies, coping with difficult eating behaviour, constipation in toddlers and an introduction to "Healthy Start". Attendees will also benefit from practical exercises and case studies. This is a great opportunity for healthcare professionals to share best practice and come away with up-to-date evidence-based information that can be used in their practice.

To register for Study Days visit the web site or call the Study Day hotline on 0870 890 5005.

If you have any questions or would like to get in touch you can contact the Infant & Toddler Forum on 020 8971 6400 or email to smanley@europrgroup.com