Episode 44 - Sarah Vermilyea - Nutrition in Children with Complex Health History

In this episode of Nutrition Pearls: the Podcast, co-hosts Jen Smith and Megan Murphy speak with Sarah Vermilyea MS, RD, CSP, LD, CNSC on the topic of nutrition in children with complex health history. Sarah is a pediatric dietitian with 20 years of experience. Over her career she has practiced across numerous pediatric specialty areas, most often in the PICU and its counterpart, outpatient complex care. She currently works at a pediatric intermediate care facility, providing nutrition care to both children and adults with complex medical needs.

Of particular interest to this podcast, Sarah was an inaugural NASPGHAN CPNP board member and the original organizer of the Nutrition Pearls YouTube series; serving CPNP members for more than 7 years.

Sarah has authored two book chapters on pediatric nutrition assessment—including NFPE for children with medical complexity—and has 12 publications in peer-reviewed journals. For the past two years, she has traveled to pediatric hospitals across the United States to train dietitians in performing NFPE on infants.

She serves as a preceptor for clinical and community nutrition interns from the University of Cincinnati, recently receiving their Outstanding Preceptor Award. Sarah is currently engaged in an exciting international collaboration with clinicians caring for children with neurological impairment.

Nutrition Pearls is supported by an educational grant from Mead Johnson Nutrition.

Resources:

Catastrophic Rupture – Orange Hat Publishing

‘How to SGNA’ by Donna Secker:

Secker DJ, Jeejeebhoy KN. How to perform Subjective Global Nutritional assessment in children. J Acad Nutr Diet. 2012 Mar;112(3):424-431.e6. doi: 10.1016/j.jada.2011.08.039. Epub 2012 Mar 1. PMID: 22717202.

‘Updated SGNA’ template by Laura Carter:

Carter L, Hulst JM, Afzal N, Jeejeebhoy K, Brunet-Wood K. Update to the pediatric Subjective Global Nutritional Assessment (SGNA). Nutr Clin Pract. 2022 Dec;37(6):1448-1457. doi: 10.1002/ncp.10859. Epub 2022 May 20. PMID: 35594373.

Produced by: Corey Irwin

NASPGHAN - Council for Pediatric Nutrition Professionals

cpnp@naspghan.org

Episode 44: CPNP Research Roadmap: Abstracts, Grants, and the New Research Roundtable Series

In this bonus episode of Nutrition Pearls: the Podcast, co-hosts Jen Smith, former CPNP Research Chair, and Nikki Misner, current CPNP Research Chair, highlight research opportunities within CPNP, including abstract submissions for the NASPGHAN Annual Meeting and the NASPGHAN Foundation CPNP Nutrition Research Grant. They also introduce a new series, Nutrition Pearls: Research Roundtable, which will feature conversations with authors about recent nutrition manuscripts and the stories behind their research.

Nutrition Pearls is supported by an educational grant from Mead Johnson Nutrition.

Resources:

NASPGHAN Annual Meeting Abstracts

NASPGHAN Foundation Grants

Produced by: Corey Irwin

NASPGHAN - Council for Pediatric Nutrition Professionals

cpnp@naspghan.org

Episode 43 - Wendy Elverson - Managing Food Protein–Induced Allergic Proctocolitis (FPIAP)

In this episode of Nutrition Pearls: the Podcast, co-hosts Megan Murphy and Bailey Koch speak with Wendy Elverson, RD, CSP, LDN about the latest research and best practice for managing infants with Food Protein-Induced Allergic Proctocolitis (FPIAP). Wendy is a registered dietitian who has specialized in clinical pediatric nutrition for more than 25 years. Currently, she is a Senior Clinical Nutrition Specialist at Boston Children’s, with expertise in pediatric food allergies and feeding disorders. Wendy is a provider in several multidisciplinary, allergy-focused clinics, including the Atopic Dermatitis Center, the FPIES Clinic, and the EGID Clinic. Wendy has been an active member of CPNP since 2015 and has had many roles, currently serving on the NASPGHAN Public Education Committee. Wendy was the previous Chair of INDANA (International Network for Diet and Nutrition in Allergy) and is the current chair of the Nutrition Work Group of the Allied Health Assembly of the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma, and Immunology (AAAAI).

She is a proud co-author of several publications, including a free resource for caregivers of children with milk and egg allergies, tolerant to baked milk and egg, Muffins and More: A Baked Milk and Baked Egg Recipe and Guidebook.

Wendy was also the recipient of the 2025 CPNP Dietitian of Excellence Award.

References:

Mahoney, L. B., et al. (2025). Food protein-induced allergic proctocolitis: What do we know and where are we going? Current Treatment Options in Pediatrics, 11(1). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40746-025-00346-4

Meyer, R., et al. (2025). An update on the diagnosis and management of non-IgE-mediated food allergies in children. Pediatric Allergy and Immunology, 36(3). https://doi.org/10.1111/pai.70060

Franco, C., Fente, C., Sánchez, C., Lamas, A., Cepeda, A., Leis, R., & Regal, P. (2022). Cow’s Milk Antigens Content in Human Milk: A Scoping Review. In Foods (Vol. 11, Issue 12). https://doi.org/10.3390/foods11121783

Gamirova, A., et al. (2022). Food proteins in human breast milk and probability of IgE-mediated allergic reaction during breastfeeding: A systematic review. Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology: In Practice, 10(5). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jaip.2022.01.028

Meyer, R., et al. (2023). WAO DRACMA guideline update VII: Milk elimination and reintroduction in cow’s milk allergy diagnosis. World Allergy Organization Journal, 16(7). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.waojou.2023.100785

Produced by: Corey Irwin

NASPGHAN - Council for Pediatric Nutrition Professionals

cpnp@naspghan.org