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Sarah Remmer, RD

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Sarah Remmer, RD

Welcome! I'm Sarah Remmer, a pediatric registered dietitian and childhood feeding expert. I’m also the founder and president of The Centre for Family Nutrition, a Canada-wide nutrition counselling practice. I am passionate about teaching parents how to raise healthy, intuitive eaters who grow to have a positive relationship with food and their bodies.

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The holidays can be the perfect opportunity for di

The holidays can be the perfect opportunity for diet culture to target anyone, including kids. It’s important to be aware of how messaging around food and body size (heard at doctors offices, at school, in the home and around friends/family) can impact a child’s long term relationship with food and their body image. Not to mention, perpetuate diet culture.

If you can, reflect on how you can dismantle diet culture in your own home (even if you focus on one or two things) over the holidays, because this will not only positively impact your kids, but also generations to come ❤️

As a dietitian mom I’m asked often about which i

If you chose to buy your child a chocolate advent

If you chose to buy your child a chocolate advent calendar, you’re not a bad parent—this tradition is a fun and yummy tradition that your kids will love to reminisce about down the road.

But they can cause anxiety for parents, which tends to be deeply rooted in diet culture. This is when we’re tempted to micromanage or restrict, which unfortunately can lead to more anxiety and stress, as well as food sneaking, obsession and a strained relationship with food.

Instead of making your kids eat their breakfast first, let them enjoy it DURING breakfast. Instead of telling kids how much sugar it has, tell them a memory of when you were a kid enjoying your advent calendar!
Let’s take diet culture out of the holidays and lean in — it’s all part of the magic! ✨

Oh veggies… 🥦🤦🏻‍♀️😑 We know t

Oh veggies… 🥦🤦🏻‍♀️😑

We know they’re nutritious, and we want our kids to eat them. We worry that if they don’t, they’ll be missing out on important nutrients. And… kids just need to eat their veggies!!!! Right?! Well, actually… no. I’m a registered dietitian, and here’s why I’m telling you this:

If you’re banging your head against the wall trying to “get your kid to eat veggies”, my guess is that you’re either directly or indirectly pressuring them to eat them. You know what pressure does? Especially to a string-willed child? It kills ANY desire to actually try them or eat them on their own. 😬

And, yes veggies are nutritious, BUT your child will still be well-nourished without them, especially if you’re serving fruit regularly (it has the same nutrients!).

Instead, stop micromanaging your child at meals. Serve a variety of foods (including veggies) at meals and snacks and create a positive eating environment. Let your child pick and choose what and how much they’ll eat (from what you’ve served) and enjoy your own meal. That’s it!

Want more info? Read this post: https://www.sarahremmer.com/why-im-not-concerned-that-my-kid-doesnt-eat-vegetables/

Sometimes it’s just nice to have a script 😉

Sometimes it’s just nice to have a script 😉

Here’s one example of how to respond to any comments around weight/size/shape/dieting at holiday events, parties or dinners (or anytime!). It IS possible to be compassionate while setting a boundary to protect your child’s relationship with food and body! Oh, and help to change toxic generational patterns involving diet culture 😉

Happy Thanksgiving to our American friends this weekend! 😘

Do you ever wonder if your child/teen is getting e

Do you ever wonder if your child/teen is getting enough iron? Personally, I’ve been worried about my 7-year-old. He’s a small eater to begin with (and after being sick for a couple of weeks, you can imagine it’s gotten worse) but has been showing signs of iron-deficiency lately. We’re getting him tested tomorrow, so we’ll see if a supplement is necessary (I always recommend visiting a doctor and getting blood work done before putting a child on an iron supplement).

Without enough iron, the body can’t produce enough hemoglobin, the substance found in red blood cells that carries the oxygen. Symptoms of iron deficiency anemia include paleness, feeling cold, shortness of breath, lack of energy/focus/concentration, and irritability.

Iron deficiency can happen for many reasons but some common diet-related reasons include: not including enough iron when introducing solids foods (for babies), following a vegetarian or vegan diet, under-consuming meat, poultry and fish, over-consumption of dairy products (and not enough iron-rich foods), prolonged or severe picky eating, or being a teenage athlete (especially in females).

There are two types of iron in the foods we eat. Animal sources (called heme-iron) are found in meat, poultry, and fish. This type of iron is easy for our bodies to absorb. Plant sources of iron include beans, peas, lentils, tofu, some vegetables, and enriched pasta or cereals. This type is non-heme iron, and our bodies are not as good at absorbing it (this is why vegetarians need almost twice the daily recommended amount of iron compared with non-vegetarians).

TO HELP INCREASE ABSORPTION OF NON-HEME IRON FOODS, YOU CAN DO A COUPLE THINGS:

Combine plant sources of iron with animal sources. For example, having kidney beans with ground meat helps our bodies to get the iron from the beans.
Include foods that are rich in vitamin C – this will make it easier for our bodies to absorb plant sources of iron (e.g. citrus fruits, mango, berries, broccoli, tomatoes, peppers).

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