Rooted Pediatric Healthcare

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Rooted Pediatric Healthcare Personalized, functional medicine for kids 🌱| Serving families with compassion & expertise | 🌿 Nurturing strong roots to help children grow

Tasty Tuesday and we are doing THE fall bake this week because pumpkin oat muffins are the thing every kid in your house...
10/13/2026

Tasty Tuesday and we are doing THE fall bake this week because pumpkin oat muffins are the thing every kid in your house is going to request on repeat from now until Thanksgiving!!

Pumpkin Oat Muffins. Soft, warm, packed with sneaky nutrition, and they smell like fall walked into your kitchen.

What you need:
1 and a half cups rolled oats blended into oat flour
1 cup pumpkin puree, not pumpkin pie filling, plain canned pumpkin
2 eggs
3 tablespoons maple syrup or honey
3 tablespoons melted coconut oil
1 teaspoon cinnamon
Half a teaspoon each of nutmeg and ginger
1 teaspoon baking powder
A pinch of sea salt
Optional add-ins: mini chocolate chips, chopped walnuts, raisins, a tablespoon of ground flaxseed

Mix wet ingredients together. Add dry ingredients and stir until just combined. Fill a greased muffin tin about three quarters full. Bake at 350 for 18 to 20 minutes until a toothpick comes out clean.

Why we love this one: pumpkin puree is loaded with vitamin A which is critical for immune function and vision, 3 grams of fiber per half cup, potassium, and antioxidants. Oats provide prebiotic beta-glucan fiber that feeds the good gut bacteria and supports immune health. Eggs add complete protein and brain-supporting choline. And when you sneak a tablespoon of ground flaxseed in they will never know and they just got omega 3s and an extra 3 grams of fiber on top of everything else.

Fall nutrition that tastes like a treat. Batch these on Sunday and snacking is handled all week!

Have you noticed that dairy intolerance seems to be everywhere right now? Your kids, your friends, half the people you k...
10/12/2026

Have you noticed that dairy intolerance seems to be everywhere right now? Your kids, your friends, half the people you know. It genuinely feels like something shifted and you are not imagining it.

Here is what is actually going on because there are real specific science-backed reasons why and none of them have anything to do with dairy itself being bad.

Swipe through because this one is going to change how you think about dairy completely!!

October 10 is World Mental Health Day and I want to talk about something that does not get nearly enough airtime in pedi...
10/09/2026

October 10 is World Mental Health Day and I want to talk about something that does not get nearly enough airtime in pediatric care.

Mental health in kids. And specifically how different it looks from what we expect.
We expect a child struggling with mental health to seem sad. Withdrawn. Tearful. Easy to identify.

But pediatric mental health so often looks like this instead:

The child who is angry all the time and nothing seems to help. The one who is chronically exhausted no matter how much they sleep. The one with the stomach aches before school that nobody can explain. The one who was fine and then suddenly is not and nobody can figure out why.

Mental and physical health are not separate systems in a child. They are deeply, completely intertwined.

The gut produces 90 percent of the body's serotonin. Chronic inflammation affects mood and cognition. Iron deficiency looks like depression. Thyroid dysfunction presents as anxiety. Sleep deprivation over time creates emotional dysregulation that looks like a behavioral disorder.

When a child is struggling emotionally, I always want to know what the body is doing. Not because the emotions are not real. Because the body is often driving them.

This is not a dismissal of mental health support, therapy, or when appropriate medication. It is a commitment to never missing the body piece of the story.

If your child is struggling emotionally and nobody has looked at the whole picture, we would love to.

The transition away from breast milk or formula is one of the most nutritionally significant moments of your baby's firs...
10/08/2026

The transition away from breast milk or formula is one of the most nutritionally significant moments of your baby's first year and most families are not given nearly enough guidance on what to do next.

Breast milk and formula are nutritionally complete. They provide fat, protein, carbohydrates, iron, calcium, vitamins, and immune support in perfectly balanced proportions. When we transition away from them, we have to be intentional about replacing those nutrients through food.

Here is what I want every mama transitioning to solids or whole milk to know:

Fat is non-negotiable. The developing brain is nearly 60 percent fat. Full fat yogurt, full fat cottage cheese, avocado, nut butters, olive oil drizzled on everything, fatty fish like salmon.

Do not put your toddler on low fat anything. They need every gram.

Iron is the one most people miss. Breast milk iron is incredibly bioavailable but once you wean, the iron source changes significantly. Red meat, dark poultry, lentils, black beans, fortified cereals, tofu. Pair iron-rich foods with vitamin C to dramatically increase absorption.

Calcium does not have to come from cow's milk. If your family is dairy free, sesame seeds, broccoli, fortified plant milks, almonds, and leafy greens all provide meaningful calcium.

Vitamin D is almost impossible to get from food alone. Supplementation is almost always appropriate for children, especially in Iowa where sun exposure drops significantly in fall.

Zinc supports immune function and growth. Found in meat, seeds, legumes, and dairy.

The transition is exciting!! It is also a real nutritional pivot point. We are always happy to talk through what it should look like for your specific child.

Reflux is one of the most common things I see in babies and also one of the most commonly mismanaged. So let me break it...
10/07/2026

Reflux is one of the most common things I see in babies and also one of the most commonly mismanaged. So let me break it down in plain language because I think a lot of families are getting incomplete information.

First, what is actually happening:

The lower esophageal sphincter, which is the little valve between the esophagus and the stomach, is immature in young babies. It does not always close tightly after feeds which allows stomach contents to travel back up. This is why babies spit up. It is normal. It is developmental. Most babies are what we call happy spitters, they spit up frequently but are not in pain, gaining weight well, and otherwise thriving.

The distinction that matters is when spitting up becomes GERD, gastroesophageal reflux disease, where the acid coming up is causing pain, disrupting feeding, affecting weight gain, or causing respiratory symptoms like chronic cough or hoarseness.

Signs that deserve a closer look:

Arching the back during or after feeds. Refusing to eat or eating only a little before pulling away. Chronic hoarseness or cough with no respiratory illness. Poor weight gain. Significant sleep disruption from discomfort. Blood in spit up.

What we look at beyond just the symptom:

Latch and feeding mechanics matter enormously. A baby who is taking in too much air during feeds will have significantly worse reflux. Maternal diet matters for breastfed babies, dairy and caffeine are common contributors. Feeding position and keeping baby upright after feeds. And gut microbiome health, because the gut-brain axis influences how the esophageal sphincter functions.

We look at the whole picture first.
If your baby seems to be in pain beyond normal spitting up, please reach out. We would love to help.

Tasty Tuesday and this one is for football season because we deserve a game day snack that actually has some nutritional...
10/06/2026

Tasty Tuesday and this one is for football season because we deserve a game day snack that actually has some nutritional backbone without tasting like it does!!

Buffalo Cottage Cheese Chicken Dip. It tastes exactly like the dip everyone already loves and it has 37 grams of protein per serving. Yes really.

What you need:
2 cups shredded chicken, rotisserie works perfectly
1 cup full fat cottage cheese blended completely smooth
Half a cup of shredded cheddar or mozzarella plus more for the top
1 can white beans drained, rinsed, and blended smooth
3 to 4 tablespoons of Franks hot sauce, adjust to your heat preference
Garlic powder and salt to taste

Blend the cottage cheese and white beans separately until completely smooth. Mix everything together in a bowl. Transfer to a baking dish. Top with extra cheese. Bake at 375 for 20 minutes until bubbly and golden.

Serve with tortilla chips, celery sticks, bell pepper strips, or cucumber slices.

Why we love this one: cottage cheese is loaded with casein protein which digests slowly and keeps everyone satisfied for hours. The white beans blend completely invisible and add plant-based fiber, iron, and protein without changing the flavor one bit. Chicken adds complete amino acids. And it tastes exactly like the thing everyone is already reaching for at the game.

Nobody will know. That is the whole point!!

October is ADHD Awareness Month and I want to offer something to this conversation that I think is largely missing from ...
10/05/2026

October is ADHD Awareness Month and I want to offer something to this conversation that I think is largely missing from it.

Not a dismissal of ADHD. Not anti-medication. Just a different lens.

Because in my practice I keep seeing the same pattern. A child who cannot focus, who is impulsive, who struggles to sit still and regulate their emotions. The school flags it. The parents get a referral. A diagnosis is made. A prescription is written.

And NOBODY asks what is happening in the gut.

Here is what the research actually shows:

Children with ADHD have measurably different gut microbiome profiles than neurotypical children. Lower levels of specific beneficial bacteria. Higher levels of inflammatory markers. Increased intestinal permeability.

That matters because 90 percent of dopamine, the neurotransmitter most associated with attention, focus, and impulse control, is produced in the gut. Not the brain. The gut.

When the gut is inflamed and the microbiome is imbalanced, dopamine production is directly affected. Focus suffers. Impulse control suffers. Emotional regulation suffers.

This does not mean every child with ADHD has a fixable gut issue. It means it is always worth asking.

Before we accept a struggling child as simply broken, I want to know: how is their sleep? What does their diet look like? Do they have gut symptoms? Are they iron or zinc deficient? Have they had significant antibiotic exposure?
These are the questions I ask. Because sometimes the answer to why a child cannot focus is sitting in their gut and nobody looked there.

If your child has been diagnosed with ADHD or you are in the middle of trying to figure out what is going on, we would love to be part of your team. Tap the link in our bio!

You drove two hours to meet this baby. You have been counting down the days. You love them so fiercely it almost hurts.A...
10/02/2026

You drove two hours to meet this baby. You have been counting down the days. You love them so fiercely it almost hurts.

And because you love them that much, I need to talk about something.

Please do not kiss the baby (or toddler).

Not on the face. Not on the hands. Not on the top of the head. Not the toes.

I say this with so much love and zero judgment because I know the impulse is pure. Newborns are irresistible and the people who love them the most are the ones we have to ask the most from.

Here is why it matters so much right now:

We are heading into RSV season, cold and flu season, and the time of year when respiratory viruses are everywhere. For adults and older kids, these illnesses are uncomfortable. For a newborn whose immune system is still developing, they can be genuinely dangerous.

RSV in particular can be life-threatening for babies.

HSV, the herpes simplex virus that causes cold sores, can be transmitted through a kiss even when there is no active sore visible. In a newborn this virus can cause severe illness and requires immediate hospitalization.

What to do instead: wash your hands before holding baby every single time. Ask anyone who is sick or has been sick in the past week to wait. Skip the kisses and squeeze those tiny feet instead.

The grandma who skips the cheek kiss and washes her hands before every hold is the grandma who loves that baby the mostttttt!!

Can we talk about honey for a second? There is a massive difference between the bear-shaped bottle on the grocery store ...
10/01/2026

Can we talk about honey for a second?

There is a massive difference between the bear-shaped bottle on the grocery store shelf and what we actually keep in our cabinet and I think every family should know why!

Raw local honey is one of the most powerful functional foods that exists and most people are buying the processed version that has lost the majority of its beneficial properties.

Raw local honey is different:

It is antimicrobial. Raw honey contains compounds that give it genuine antimicrobial activity against a wide range of bacteria and viruses. Commercial processed honey is heated and filtered in ways that destroy most of these compounds.

It fights seasonal allergies. Local raw honey contains trace amounts of local pollen from the flowers your bees are visiting in your specific region. When consumed regularly it acts like a gentle natural desensitization to those local allergens. Kids who take local honey consistently through the year often have measurably milder seasonal allergy symptoms.

This is especially powerful for Iowa families because our pollen seasons are significant.

It is the best natural cough suppressant we have for children. Multiple clinical studies have shown raw honey to be as effective as or better than over the counter cough medicine for kids over 12 months. A teaspoon before bed for a cough or sore throat is genuinely one of the first things I reach for.

It supports the gut microbiome. Raw honey contains prebiotics, enzymes, and beneficial compounds that support the growth of beneficial bacteria in the gut.

How to use it: stir into warm tea or warm water with lemon at the first sign of illness. Drizzle over yogurt or oatmeal daily. Use in baking in place of refined sugar. And for seasonal allergy support start a small daily dose, half a teaspoon for kids, a teaspoon for adults, ideally a few months before allergy season begins.

Where to find local raw honey: farmers markets, local beekeepers, and many Iowa grocery stores carry local options. Look for raw and unfiltered on the label and ideally a source within 50 miles of where you live.

And always remember, never give honey to babies under 12 months due to botulism risk.

Every single fall I see a surge in ear infections in my practice. And every single fall I think about how many of those ...
09/30/2026

Every single fall I see a surge in ear infections in my practice. And every single fall I think about how many of those we could have gotten ahead of if families had known what to watch for.

Here is what is actually happening in your child's body during the seasonal transition and what you can do about it right now before the first one hits!!

Save this and share it with every mama who has been in the ear infection cycle!!

Address

105 E Butler Street
Manchester, IA
52057

Opening Hours

Monday 8am - 5pm
Tuesday 8am - 5pm
Wednesday 8am - 5pm
Thursday 8am - 5pm
Friday 8am - 5pm

Telephone

(563)9201515

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