How parents can help their kids thrive at any size

By Jill Castle, MS, RDN and Kathleen Zelman, RDN

Today's podcast is about health and happiness at every stage of our children's development, no matter what their size, and how we as parents can help our kids build healthy habits.

To guide us through the challenges is leading pediatric nutritionist and registered dietician, Jill Castle, MS, RDN. Jill is one of the nation's premier childhood nutrition experts.

The founder and CEO of The Nourished Child®, a nutrition education website and podcast, Jill has authored multiple books. Jill blends current research with common-sense advice to ensure children can thrive at every size. An expert reviewer for Parents.com, Jill has been a guest expert for CNN, The Washington Post, The New York Times, and many other outlets.

A mom of four with over 30 years of professional experience, Jill has dedicated her career to helping families raise confident, well-nourished kids.

A good read on nourishing your child

Jill's latest book is Kids thrive at every size: how to nourish your big, small, or in-between child for a lifetime of health and happiness. In it, Jill offers a whole-child approach on raising healthy kids no matter their size or stage of growth.

Jill firmly believes that feeding kids isn't just about what's on their plate. It's about creating a positive, flexible approach that supports their overall development, inspiring us all to think differently about health and wellbeing in children.

The challenge: keeping kids interested in a healthy lifestyle

We live in a world where parents struggle with their children's lack of interest in healthy foods. Kathleen asks Jill how she would handle a client with a child whom the growth curve says is overweight, and the child has bad eating habits. They discuss how to get those children back on track.

Jill discusses her systematic approach to working with families and helping them encourage their children, offer them more nutritious foods, and set up their home environment so that it's more structured and predictable. She notes that children respond really well to having a routine with food.

Jill explains what it means to build structure around meals and snacks, and what to do when their children are constantly hungry and asking for food. She offers a strategy to set up meals and snacks from a timing perspective, from a nutrient perspective, adding foods that we know are more satiating to both meals and snacks. The trick is to get our kids to feel full when they're done eating and don't need to ask for more food in between meals. She emphasizes the two foods kids will never gain weight eating, and how to make those foods more appealing.

Why we should give kids sweets and treats

Kathleen asks whether we shouldn't have anything in the house then that's not filling the healthy needs of a child; that is, sweets and treats. Jill surprises us with her answer, saying that it's important to have those foods in the house because it neutralizes them a bit and doesn't put them on a pedestal. Putting snacks on a pedestal makes them very enticing to children. Jill explains the unpredictability in children's lives around sweets and treats, encourages families to make them predictable, and shows us how.

Key takeaways

In a world where children get more anxious about food and depressed about their bodies, Jill recommends a more holistic approach: the eight pillars of wellness.

Parents can raise kids to develop healthy habits and grow up feeling proud about their bodies and healthy in their bodies.

Bullying is very prevalent in the lives of children who carry extra weight.

Parents can help their children feel good about themselves, no matter the type of body they're in.

Bullying aside, there are serious health concerns associated with carrying too much weight.

Jill is careful not to assume a child has a health concern just because the child is larger.

Movement, nutritional intake, and sleep can help the young body get to a healthier place, if necessary.

Families are not getting nutrition education at an early stage. We professionals need to be much more proactive in terms of prevention, education, lifestyle behaviors, good nutrition, etc.

We still don't know long-term effects of weight-loss medications on growing bodies. And ideally, we don't want kids to be on these medications for their life.

Resources are available to support parents in helping their families build healthy, happy bodies.

About Jill Castle, MS, RDN

Jill Castle is the author of the book, Kids Thrive at Every Size (Workman, 2024) and one of the
nation's premier childhood nutrition experts. Known for her ability to blend current research,
practical application, and common sense, Jill believes that children can thrive at every size. With
her paradigm-shifting, whole-child approach, she inspires parents, healthcare professionals, and
organizations that serve children and families to think differently about young people's health
and well being.

A sought-after speaker, advisor, and media contributor, Jill has inspired a range of audiences
with her up-to-date, practical insights on childhood nutrition. She serves as an expert reviewer
for Parents.com, has been featured as a guest expert in CNN, The Washington Post, The New
York Times, Forbes, Newsweek, Time, and many other outlets.

Jill is the founder and CEO of The Nourished Child®, a nutrition education website and podcast
for parents. She is the author of books including Eat Like a Champion, Try New Food, and coauthor
of Fearless Feeding.

Jill is the mother of four adult-ish children and lives in Massachusetts with her husband.