Holistic Pediatricians

Dr. Chheda – Some toddlers aren’t picky – they’re just sensitive. They gag on certain textures, or they limit their diet to certain foods because of sensory issues.

Some strategies to try are to use a vibrating toothbrush to help desensitize their mouth, to do food-based play therapy – smell the food, squish the food, touch the food. It’s not only about taste, it’s about using all the senses.

And offer deconstructed meals – a little bit of different foods on the plate that are not touching each other.

And if these strategies don’t work, a referral to an occupational therapist is the next step.

Dr. Chheda – 🦠Gut health is a game changer. A good microbiome not only helps immunity and digestion, but also helps your child’s mood and behavior. Kids with gut imbalance often show food aversions or obsessive food fixations.

Some ways to help your child have a stronger gut is to: Introduce probiotics early, such as yogurt, kefir, kimchi.

Try to limit antibiotics and discuss with your pediatrician how you can do that.

Rotate foods on a regular basis so there’s a good variety of foods in your child’s gut.

And last, you can use bone broth or lentil soup to help heal the gut lining.

Dr. Chheda – Fussy eating is not a personality trait – it’s communication. It’s how your child is trying to communicate with you about a sensory challenge they might be having.

Some of the root causes can be digestive discomfort, like constipation, or over-reliance on bland carbs and sugars, or under-exposure to certain textures and smells.

It can also be just how they are responding to any kind of parental stress in the house and any inconsistent routines they are having. Your child is not just being difficult.

🏊 Swimming isn’t just fun – it’s a life-saving skill. Did you know that drowning is a leading cause of accidental death in young children? Absolutely. Swimming is actually a safety – it’s more safety than it is fun, 100%.

In addition to safety, it also helps boost your child’s confidence. It helps them overcome fear and gain independence. It helps with overall fitness and agility. It’s a full body workout, flexibility, and it also helps relieve stress.

You know what’s better than floating in the water? Bye!

Dr. Chheda – 🥦 Being a mom in today’s world is a full-time job. Being a mom of a picky eater is a full contact sport.

If you’ve ever had to negotiate with your child to take one bite of broccoli, we see you. If you’ve had your toddler throw an organic chicken nugget across the room and a full Michelin starred food critic meltdown, you’re not alone.

This guide will help you decode picky eating with compassion, science, and a holistic mindset.

Dr. Chheda – Your toddler needs about half a gram of protein per kilogram of weight every day. So let’s break this down.

A typical one-year-old is about 10 kilos, so they need 5 grams of protein a day. That’s all they really need. A glass of milk has about 8 grams of protein in it. An egg has 9 grams of protein in it. So if they’re drinking a glass of milk, they’re already getting more protein than they need for that particular day.

So you don’t have to fill your child up with extra protein. Your child is getting plenty of protein with everything that they eat during the day.

Now a typical four-year-old is about 20 kilos, so half of that is 10 grams protein per day. Again, an egg has 9 grams of protein in it. They eat an egg a day, they’re gonna get plenty of protein with that egg and everything else combined in it.

They do not need extra protein. You don’t need to push extra protein on them. You don’t have to give them extra meat or extra beans. A cup of beans has 40 grams of protein. A couple of bites of beans is all they really need every day.

You know what happens to that extra protein if it’s not utilized? It turns into fat. Okay, they don’t need that extra protein. They are not building muscle. After the age of 5 is when they build muscle. Before 5, they’re getting all their height. If you see a typical 3-year-old, they are tall and skinny because they are building height. They need lots of fruits and vegetables.

So please focus on the fruits and vegetables for your toddlers. They will get plenty of protein just from that.

Dr. Chheda – Breast milk has lots of antibodies, maternal antibodies that are passed to the baby during nursing. But exactly which antibodies are present in breast milk?

It’s the antibodies that the mom is actively making at the moment. It’s not past antibodies. So if the mom had an infection or a vaccine years ago, those antibodies don’t go through the breast milk.

It’s only the antibodies that the mom is making on that specific day that go through breast milk. So if mom has a cold, an infection, those antibodies are going through the breast milk and will help the child either fight off the infection faster or they don’t get it, which is good.

But they’re not gonna get past antibodies. So pure breastfeeding to try to get your vaccines into your baby? That’s not the way it works.

🌱 How do you teach your kid to be conservation minded? Um, my kids are in Scouts and one of the rank requirements is actually to go on a picnic or a trip with your family and take note of how much trash you produce during that trip.

That’s a good one!

That’s a good one. And then similarly, on another trip you wanna talk about, kind of think about ways that you would eliminate that extra trash, that extra baggage.

Oh, that’s nice.

And so things that you hit on are recycling, reducing, reusing.

That’s right, yes.

I like it. So I do challenge you guys – go on a trip, go outside, enjoy this lovely weather, and take note of the trash you produce, and then hopefully minimize it the next time. Bye guys!

Dr. Chheda – Why am I always harping on the vegetables?

Vegetables are great, but what about protein? What about carbs? What about all the other things?

Yes, in a typical diet, you will get plenty of protein without even having to think about it. You only need to increase your protein at certain stages of your life if you’re actively exercising and trying to build muscle. But the typical diet will give you plenty of protein. That’s why I harp on the vegetables, because nobody’s eating their vegetables! What do vegetables have? Vegetables have lots of vitamins that help your body grow and function the way it’s supposed to. Vegetables have lots of fiber. That fiber helps you have a clean bowel, so it prevents colon cancer risks later on in life. Then, because of the fiber, it also makes you feel full, so you don’t tend to eat as much afterwards. Vegetables don’t have as many calories. It’s all in the way that you prepare them, and you can spice it up—it’s perfectly fine.

But yes, I harp on the vegetables because nobody in this country really is eating enough vegetables.

Dr. Chheda – Let’s talk about a universal truth of adolescence: the “invincibility complex.” Every teenager goes through this phase where they believe nothing bad can happen to them.

You’ll hear thoughts like: “I don’t need a seatbelt” “It won’t happen to me” “I’m not going to get hurt”

For parents, this can be terrifying. But here’s what you can do:

Keep repeating safety messages

Consistently model good behavior

Understand that some mistakes are part of growing up

The goal isn’t to prevent every mistake – that’s impossible. Instead, focus on preventing those permanent, life-altering ones. That’s every parent’s real concern.