BC Pediatric Nutrition Guidelines for Health Professionals

Photo of fresh fruits

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PHAC has shared an updated version of the BC Pediatric Nutrition Guidelines for Health Professionals along with two additional resources were developed to support their application in practice:

·       A summary of recommendations for fluids and foods

·       A new 2-hour free online course hosted on the University of British Columbia Faculty of Medicine Continuing Professional Development platform

The BC Pediatric Nutrition Guidelines for Health Professionals are evidence-informed nutrition and feeding guidelines for healthy full-term infants and children from birth to six years of age that health professionals can use to provide high-quality care related to feeding and to identify potential nutrition risk.

The document covers food and fluid guidelines as well as other nutrition topics such as:

  • Informed decision making about infant feeding

  • Parental influences on eating habits

  • Iron and iron deficiency anemia

  • Vitamin D

  • Food allergy prevention for infants and toddlers at increased risk

  • Childhood tooth decay prevention

  • Choking prevention

  • Fish consumption and methylmercury

  • Food safety

  • Commercial formula

  • Growth monitoring

  • Feeding during emergencies 

Designed as a reference guide for all health professionals who work with infants and children in British Columbia (e.g. family physicians, dieticians, nurses, nurse practitioners, midwives, etc.) the document outlines evidence-informed nutrition and feeding guidelines for healthy, full-term infants and children from birth to six years of age. The Guidelines also suggest when additional action, investigation and/or referral may be needed for infants and children who present with feeding or nutrition concerns or parents needing additional support.

The Guidelines take into consideration the social determinants of health and use a strength-based, wellness-centred approach. They encourage health professionals to provide compassionate care that is family-centred, culturally safe and relevant, gender affirming, trauma-informed and inclusive.

The Guidelines were updated after an extensive provincial consultation. Key changes in the 2022 version include:

  • Addition of recommendations for infants (birth to 6 months)

  • Content updates to align with provincial nutrition policy and messaging, latest evidence and best practice

  • Emphasis on responsive feeding and positive feeding relationship between parent and child, as promoted by the Satter Division of Responsibility in Feeding 

  • New content under Additional Information on food insecurity, childhood tooth decay prevention, vitamin D, sugar substitutes, caffeine, energy drinks and feeding during emergencies.

The Summary of Recommendations for Fluids and Foods summarizes the recommendations for fluids and foods for healthy, full-term infants and children from birth to six years of age. It is intended to be used as a quick reference guide and does not replace the BC Pediatric Nutrition Guidelines for Health Professionals.

For an interactive overview of the Guidelines, along with additional information and support for applying the Guidelines in practice, a free 2-hour online course is available through the University of British Columbia Faculty of Medicine Continuing Professional Development platform:

For an interactive overview of the Guidelines, and additional information and support for applying the Guidelines in practice, a free 2-hour online course is available through the University of British Columbia Faculty of Medicine Continuing Professional Development platform: Pediatric Nutrition Guidelines Online Course

These resources were developed after an extensive consultation over the past year with health authorities, health partners, the Population and Public Health Program at the BC Centre for Disease Control, and the Office of Nutrition Policy and Promotion at the BC Ministry of Health.

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