What Does a Pediatric Dietitian Do? A Parent’s Guide

“What Does a Pediatric Dietitian Do? A Parent’s Guide” was written by Maurya Hart, BSc, RD and edited/reviewed by Jackie Silver MHSc, RD.

Medical Disclaimer: The information in this article is meant for educational purposes only. It is not intended to be personalized medical or nutrition advice. For a plan tailored to your needs, please consult with a Registered Dietitian or qualified healthcare professional.

Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links with which I may earn a small commission but at no additional cost to you. Affiliate links help bloggers like me to provide you with free content. All opinions expressed here are genuine. 

Last updated: December 4, 2025

Looking for a Pediatric Dietitian Nutritionist?

Are you looking for a pediatric dietitian nutritionist who understands the unique needs of neurodivergent children? Then you’re in the right place! As a parent, it can be challenging to deal with nutritional concerns in your little one, such as picky eating, problems with growth, and allergies. Luckily, we’re here to help.

At Jackie Silver Nutrition, we provide virtual nutrition counseling and take a personalized and evidence-based approach to nutrition and health, helping neurodivergent children and teens meet their goals. 

Our practice is rooted in a practical, neuroaffirming philosophy, where we respect the individual needs of the child and family we are working with. Our main goal is to make eating and mealtimes an enjoyable experience for you!

What Can a Pediatric Dietitian Nutritionist Help With?

A pediatric dietitian nutritionist can provide support for children and teens in a wide range of areas, including:

• Growth and development: Guidance on nourishing kids through all stages, including support for food allergies and introducing new foods.
  
• Picky eating & ARFID-informed care: Gentle, pressure-free strategies to support optimal nutrition, diet expansion, managing anxiety and fear surrounding eating, and food acceptance.
  
• ADHD and appetite: Strategies to ensure adequate intake for children with ADHD on stimulant medications, or who become distracted at mealtimes.
  
• Mealtime peace: Practical tools to reduce stress and “dinner table battles,” to create a calm, positive mealtime environment for the whole family.
  
• Digestive and GI concerns: Support for constipation, diarrhea, bloating, and other GI complaints through gentle nutrition.
  
• Weight gain: Nutritional support for children who are underweight or struggling to meet growth milestones.
  
• Nutrient gaps: Identifying and addressing common deficiencies (e.g., iron, B12, vitamin D), through diet with supplement guidance when needed.
  
• Mindful eating for kids: Helping children build body trust and tune in to hunger and fullness cues.
  
• Meal planning skills: Empowering teens and families to build balanced, practical meals.
  
• Body image & food talk: Coaching for parents on how to speak about food and bodies in a supportive, shame-free way.

How Does a Pediatric Dietitian Nutritionist Help?

There are several ways that our pediatric dietitian nutritionists will work with you to meet your goals. Here are a few of the key strategies in our tool box:

• Creating a calm mealtime environment and routine: This includes everything from ensuring your child is seated correctly, to optimizing sensory stimulation, to having your child engage with different foods that the family is eating (even if they don’t eat it themselves!)

• Food chaining to introduce new foods: A strategy that involves starting with a safe, accepted food, and making small changes to get to a new food. It is an effective way to expand a child’s range of accepted foods, and requires consistent attempts and patience! Check out this blog post for some food chaining examples. 

• Optimizing calorie and protein intake: When children are losing weight, or not gaining weight as expected, we will work with you to make sure every bite counts. This may involve enriching cooking foods in high quality fat sources, like olive oil, choosing higher calorie and protein products (like full fat dairy), and adding nutritional supplements if necessary.

• Increasing fiber intake for constipation: A common concern among neurodivergent children, we will work with you to gently increase fibre intake in a way that is enjoyable for your child (think high-fiber baked goods, smoothies, chia seed puddings, and fibre supplements that dissolve completely in water) to make everything run smoothly.

These are only a few examples of strategies a pediatric nutritionist will use in your work together! Our goal is that by the time our work together is done, you feel empowered and equipped with the knowledge you need to continue working towards your goals.

What Makes Jackie Silver Nutrition’s Pediatric Dietitian Nutritionists Unique?

Expertise in Neurodivergent Nutrition

Supporting neurodivergent individuals requires specialized knowledge, and that’s where we shine. We have experience working with individuals with ADHD, autism, Down Syndrome, and intellectual/ developmental disabilities (IDD), helping them develop sustainable eating habits that fit their unique needs and brains.

Our expertise includes:

• SOS-Trained Techniques: These strategies help selective eaters and those with sensory challenges feel more comfortable trying new foods. We typically use SOS techniques when working with selective eaters, to gradually expand food variety.
  
• Mindfulness-Based Eating Awareness Training (MBEAT): We encourage mindful eating habits that reduce stress and promote intuitive eating. This can include getting in touch with your hunger & fullness cues and learning how to honor your body’s cravings.
  
• Collaboration with Caregivers & Schools: We work with other health professionals, families, educators, and group homes to create a supportive nutrition environment. We often do sessions with multiple family members or other caregivers to best support our clients!

Inclusive Care Philosophy

Jackie Silver Nutrition was founded on the belief that nutrition should be accessible, inclusive, and free from guilt or restriction. Our approach is rooted in a weight-inclusive, Health at Every Size (HAES) philosophy, which emphasizes that health exists on a spectrum that includes people of all shapes, sizes, backgrounds, and abilities.

We focus on the many indicators of health, such as blood test results, energy levels, gut symptoms, mood, focus, and more. Our goal is to empower individuals to create a positive relationship with food, free from shame or pressure, and prioritize overall well-being.

What Can I Expect When Working with a Pediatric Dietitian Nutritionist at Jackie Silver Nutrition?

Our Services Include:

1:1 Nutrition Counseling 

During virtual (video call)  one-on-one nutrition counseling sessions, we provide expert guidance to navigate their unique dietary and health needs of neurodivergent children. 

We will collaborate closely with you to set practical, achievable nutrition goals that support your child’s well-being while considering their sensory preferences, nutritional status, and comfort level.

Your First Session with a Pediatric Dietitian Nutritionist: Initial Consultation

Your first session is all about gaining a comprehensive understanding of your child’s situation, needs, motivations and goals. Here’s what you can expect:

• A Deep Dive into You & Your Nutrition Needs: We’ll explore your child’s medical history (from infancy to their current age), daily eating patterns, digestion, food preferences, sensory sensitivities, aversions, and any challenges they may be facing.
• A Judgment-Free, Collaborative Approach: Together, we’ll set realistic and meaningful goals that fit your lifestyle, abilities, and comfort level.
• Personalized Strategies to Get Started: You’ll leave with a few practical, easy-to-implement recommendations to help build confidence and progress right away.

Follow Up Sessions for Ongoing Support

We know that nutrition changes take time, which is why we offer continued support to ensure long-term success. Our follow-up sessions focus on:

• Step-by-Step Guidance: We’ll work through specific food-related challenges, whether it’s expanding a limited diet, improving mealtime structure, or increasing caloric intake.
• Practical Resources for Individuals, Families and Caregivers: We provide tools, strategies, and meal ideas to help reinforce progress at home.
• Flexible Scheduling: Sessions are typically spaced 4–6 weeks apart, giving you time to implement changes at a comfortable pace.

Nutrition Packages 

We offer two different nutrition counseling packages depending on the unique situations and circumstances you are in.

• Tier 1 Basic Package: Our basic package starts with three sessions, providing essential guidance and tailored recommendations.
  
• Tier 2 Transformation Package: This package offers in-depth support, including 5 comprehensive coaching sessions and free access to specialized resources.

Click here to explore our Pediatric Nutrition Packages.

Beyond Counselling: What Else Does a Pediatric Dietitian-Nutritionist Do?

We also provide several services beyond individual counselling, including our online meal prep course and consulting services for nutrition workshops, menu and recipe development, and brand partnerships! 

Online Meal Prep Course 

Our Meal Prep Made Easy (MPME) course is specifically designed to teach meal prep skills tailored for neurodivergent individuals, including those with ADHD and ASD. You can complete it online, going at your own pace.

This course is a great chance for older neurodivergent children, teens, and young adults to become empowered with the skills they need to gain independence in meal prep. It is especially useful for this group as they move into new stages of their lives, like high school, college, or university.

It is also relevant for neurodivergent families who want to be more efficient with feeding their families. 

Developed with input from focus groups, it offers strategies customized to different learning styles, making meal planning and preparation feel more manageable and achievable for individuals with unique needs.

By the end of the course, clients gain confidence and independence, reduce meal-related stress, and free up time for other important aspects of life by learning how to simplify the task of feeding themselves.

Consulting Services and Nutrition Education Workshops

We provide expert consulting services for organizations, schools, healthcare facilities, and companies looking to enhance their nutrition programs or create inclusive food environments. 

Whether it’s developing nutrition education resources, advising on neurodivergent-friendly menus, or partnering on social media, we bring evidence-based expertise to help businesses better support diverse dietary needs. This includes: 

• Speaking Engagements: Our team of dietitians is available to offer virtual or in-person workshops to schools, organizations, corporate companies, and more. We cover a wide range of topics, including meal planning for neurodivergent teens, nutrition for mental health, healthy eating at school, mindful eating skills, and selective eating.
  
• Recipe Development: We create neurodivergent-friendly, easy-to-follow recipes that align with various dietary needs. Whether it’s for brands, publications, or personal use, our recipes prioritize taste, accessibility, and sensory-friendly ingredients.
  
• Social Media: We partner with brands on sponsored content, user-generated content (UGC), and product showcases through engaging Instagram reels, stories, and static posts. Some of our past partnerships include Sperri and Ontario Dairy. If you’re a brand interested in working together, reach out to explore creative collaboration opportunities!

Do You Only Support Pediatric Populations?

Not at all! At Jackie Silver Nutrition, we understand that everyone is unique and develops differently, both intellectually and physically.

Because of the populations we serve, we often get adult clients who are struggling to expand their diet, gain weight, and develop a neutral relationship with food and their body. Especially if they never had a chance to work on these areas with professional support in their childhood, it can be incredibly healing to do this work in adulthood.

We use the same, neuroaffirming, gentle, and realistic approach with neurodivergent adults that we do with children and teens.

Our team at Jackie Silver Nutrition is equipped to support adult clients in the following areas:

• Neurodivergent, intellectual, and physical disabilities: Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD), Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD), Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, Spina Bifida, and Spinal Cord Injury.
  
• ARFID (Avoidant/Restrictive Food Intake Disorder): Gentle strategies for expanding dietary variety, improving nutritional adequacy, and reducing mealtime anxiety.
  
• Disordered eating: Weight-inclusive, non-judgmental support for individuals navigating restrictive eating patterns, sensory challenges, or difficult relationships with food.
  
• Food aversions and diet expansion: Sensory-informed nutrition guidance to support food acceptance in a safe and pressure-free way.
  
• Mindful eating: Encouraging a peaceful relationship with food through body respect, hunger/fullness awareness, and enjoyable eating experiences.
  
• Digestive health: Support for managing constipation, diarrhea, IBS, neurogenic bowel, and related concerns.
  
• Malnutrition and weight restoration: Nutritional strategies to support safe and sustainable weight gain in those who are undernourished.
  
• Chronic disease prevention and management: Individualized nutrition care for conditions such as diabetes, high blood pressure, high cholesterol, and heart disease.
  
• Pressure injury prevention and healing: Nutrition recommendations to support skin integrity and wound recovery.
  
• Therapeutic diets and texture modifications: Optimizing nutrition on pureed, minced, or thickened fluid diets for individuals with dysphagia, stroke, or neurological conditions.
  
• Meal planning and preparation: Practical support to build confidence with balanced, accessible meals tailored to individual needs and abilities.
  
• General healthy eating: Flexible, evidence-based guidance for overall wellness, without restriction or shame.

To learn more about our adult services, check out these blog posts:

• Why Working With an ADHD Dietitian Will Help You Thrive
• Your Guide to Working With a Toronto Dietitian Nutritionist
• Why Working with an Autism Dietitian is Key to Your Health
• Working With an NYC Dietitian: Everything You Need to Know

Why Choose Jackie Silver Nutrition?

We stand out because of our:

• Compassionate, client-centered approach that prioritizes neuroaffirming care, inclusivity, and real-life solutions.
• Proven results that showcase the positive impact of our work.
• Commitment to ongoing education to stay at the forefront of neurodivergent pediatric nutrition.

Work with a Pediatric Dietitian Nutritionist Today

At Jackie Silver Nutrition, we believe nutrition should be simple, enjoyable, and accessible to everyone. Book a *FREE 15-minute discovery call today to learn how we can support you! 

*Although we are based in Toronto and NYC (New York City), we can provide virtual nutrition counseling to anyone in Ontario (including Kingston, Ottawa, Kitchener/Waterloo, London, Windsor, and more), New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and US residents of certain states, including but not limited to New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Pennsylvania, Texas, and California. If your province or state is not listed here, please inquire to see if we can still support you.

Success Stories

Real Results from Our Pediatric Dietitian Nutritionist Services

Please note that names have been changed to respect client confidentiality.

I reached out to Jackie when my son who was diagnosed with Autism was becoming very selective with his eating. We had daily struggles and many meltdowns when we couldn’t figure out what he would eat as he was even losing the love for his “safe foods.” Jackie helped us to discuss ways to get better nutrition in without changing a whole lot to my son’s foods that he would eat. She also helped to come up with new foods to try based on what he does already like, and to continue to try foods he may have avoided previously. We learned different ways to encourage our son to help make meals, try foods, and clean up – which altogether added more excitement at meal times. We started with Jackie in November 2024, and are now ending services with her in April 2025 as we have reached all of our goals and made HUGE strides. We eat together as a family now without having to plans a second meal to be ready if he doesn’t eat (he will almost at least try anything now, or at least eat 1-2 things on his plate), we have had more success eating out at restaurants as there is food he will eat, and we haven’t had meltdowns surrounding food in quite some time. Jackie was a huge help and I cannot recommend her enough.

-Tania
‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎‎

Jackie is so compassionate and caring! She really listens and helps! She has a lot of patience with parents trying to get kids to try new foods. I highly recommend her!

-Jackson
‎‎‎‎

I hired Jackie to work with my 16 year old son who autistic, ADHD with an intellectual impairment. I wasn’t sure what to expect as this was something new for both of us but Jackie instantly made my son feel comfortable and he was able to be himself with her.

Thank you Jackie for your expertise, patience and above all, your support with respect to [my son]. He is on his way to making healthier options and slowly taking ownership of choosing, shopping and prepping his meals! I highly recommend Jackie to anyone who is lucky enough to work with her and we look forward to work together again in the future.

-Lindsay
‎‎‎

I have been working with Jackie for the last few month, she was supporting me and my special needs son. She is a patient, knowledgeable and compassionate person. We had made great strides. I highly recommend working with her.

-Beth
‎‎‎

Working with Jackie has been an eye-opening experience. I first came to her regarding my son’s narrow palette of food choices and needing to gain weight. He is ASD and ADHD and medication suppresses appetite so there is a lot of factors involved. Jackie had experience with these situations and so much knowledge to share while also being mindful of what is manageable for our lifestyle. My son has made progress in trying new foods and I have learned so much from her. So grateful for our sessions!

-Tessa
‎‎‎

As an overwhelmed autism mom staring at a long list of food aversions for my 8-year-old son, Jackie was an invaluable resource to me and my family. She listened to my concerns about my son’s health and provided me with the resources, tools and support I needed to encourage my son to try new foods and even which supplements he should take. After months of hard work (and a lot of patience), my son is much more willing to try new foods that are doable for him and without pressure. His behaviour, sleep, and bowel movements have improved tremendously. During this process, I also hired Jackie to help me gain more control around food and how to properly nourish my body so I have the energy to keep up with my kids and be my best throughout the day. I was sifting through an endless amount of nutrition information online and was overwhelmed about what was right for me. Jackie was able to assess my situation and develop a nutritional plan specifically for me with great sensitivity and knowledge. I’m thrilled to say that my energy levels and sleep have greatly improved. She’s a great listener and her kind nature put me at ease and made working with her absolutely wonderful. Her services are an investment worth making. I highly recommend Jackie as a registered dietitian and nutritionist for kids with ASD and their families.

-Naomi
‎‎‎‎

Thank you for your very informative sessions for my daughter. They were clear, easy for her to understand and follow. Thanks for all of the handouts and great recipes. Very much enjoyed everything!

-Victor

TL;DR

Looking for a pediatric dietitian nutritionist who truly understands neurodivergent kids and teens? Jackie Silver Nutrition offers virtual, neuroaffirming, evidence-based support for picky eating, ARFID, ADHD-related appetite issues, growth concerns, GI issues, nutrient gaps, mealtime stress, and more. We use gentle, practical strategies, like food chaining, mindful eating, and sensory-informed mealtime routines, to support optimal nutrition and health in neurodivergent youth.

Our team specializes in ADHD, autism, and IDD, offers 1:1 counseling, nutrition packages, meal prep courses, and workshops. We don’t only support kids and teens, but adults too. We take an individualized, realistic approach that meets you and your child where they’re at, to help your whole family thrive.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

For more expert tips and insights, follow us on Instagram @accessiblewellness

Check out some of our other blog posts:

• Nourishing Neurodiversity: Fiber for Picky Eaters at Any Age
• Appetite vs Hunger: How to Tell the Difference
• What Is Feeding Therapy for Picky Eaters?
• Why Working With an ADHD Dietitian Will Help You Thrive
• Autism and ARFID: When ‘Picky Eating’ Is So Much More