It is important for young patients to meet with their gastroenterologist and dietitian on a regular basis. At Boston Children’s Inflammatory Bowel Disease Center, we have two IBD nutritionists on staff ready to carry your child through their EEN journey.
Solid foods
When weaning a patient off EEN, we begin by adding solid foods back into their diet. The choice of solid foods depends upon your child. Initially, we recommend adding one solid meal a day for the first three to seven days then advance as tolerated. Quick reintroduction of solid food will often result in return of symptoms.
Diet
Moving forward, we recommend an anti-inflammatory diet, which may include a carbohydrate-free diet or a “clean” non-processed food diet. Once the weaning process begins, we suggest maintaining a 50 percent, formula-based diet for four to six months, then slowly wean based on test results.
Follow-up visits
Appointments with a dietitian will be determined based on adequacy of nutritional intake. Children on EEN may use an online food diary, called a chronometer. This tool allows our patient to share dietary information with a nutritionist in real time. The chronometer is the only online food diary that will show the nutrition analysis based on children’s requirements. Your child’s dietitian will monitor nutritional activity and quickly determine whether all dietary needs are being met.
During the visit, we also discuss the psychological impact the diet is having on the patient and family in an attempt to determine whether they can be added back or find suitable alternatives that meet a healthier profile.
