Session Type: General Session

Rhoads Research Lecture and Awards Ceremony: Dispelling Myths About Child Growth (T10)

General Session

Tanis R. Fenton
MHSc, PhD, RD, FDC

Join the 2026 Rhoads Research Lecture Award Recipient, Dr. Tanis Fenton for a lecture about dispelling myths about child growth.

Child growth assessments are a key component of public health surveillance as well as both individual health screening and clinical care. Normal growth should be defined differently for populations versus individuals, but guidelines for individuals have limitations. Dr. Fenton will review the strengths and weaknesses of current guidelines and make evidence-informed recommendations for improvements.

Read Biography

Dr. Tanis Fenton is a Registered Dietitian, Epidemiologist and Adjunct Professor at the University of Calgary’s Cumming School of Medicine. Dr. Fenton is the Dietitians of Canada Liaison for the Canadian Pediatric Society’s Nutrition Committee. She is best known for the growth chart she developed based on a need she saw for better growth charts for preterm infants when working clinically as a neonatal dietitian. Dr. Fenton is considered a thought leader for child growth assessments and has been invited to speak about growth and nutrition care around the world.

Date & Time:

February 17, 2026

7:45 AM – 9:00 AM PT

Format:

In Person & Virtual

CE Credits:

1.0 Hours

UAN: JA0002345-0000-26-044-L99-P

Course level:

Advanced

Pediatric Content Included

session objectives:

What You'll Learn

  • Summarize current guidelines for assessing overweight, underweight, wasting, stunting, and growth faltering
  • Analyze limitations when applying growth cut-points to individuals
  • Propose evidence-informed revisions to current growth cut-points
  • Describe how parent communications about growth can support responsive feeding while avoiding stigma

Topics & Presenters

Dispelling Myths About Child Growth

Tanis R. Fenton
MHSc, PhD, RD, FDC

Registered Dietitian, Epidemiologist, and Adjunct Professor

Cumming School of Medicine, University of Calgary

Calgary, AB, Canada

President’s Address: Your Network is Your Net Worth: Membership in Professional Organizations Helps Innovate and Saves Lives (M10)

General Session

Kathy Gura
Kathleen Gura
PharmD, BCNSP, FASHP, FPPA, FASPEN, FMSHP

Join ASPEN’s 49th president, Kathleen Gura, PharmD, BCNSP, FASHP, FPPA, FASPEN, FMSHP, who will illustrate how networking within professional organizations drives clinical innovation and improves patient outcomes.

Read Biography

Dr. Gura is the manager for Pharmacy Research Programs and a member of the Clinical Nutrition Service in the Division of GI/Nutrition at Boston Children’s Hospital (BCH). She is also a member of BCH’s Center for Advanced Intestinal Rehabilitation and the Home PN Program. She serves on the faculty at Harvard Medical School as an assistant professor of pediatrics and is a member of the school’s Division of Nutrition. In addition, Dr. Gura is an adjunct faculty member at the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health.

A native New Englander, Dr. Gura received her BS and PharmD degrees with honors from the Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences. From 1982 to 1984, she honed her interest in nutrition as a clinical pharmacist at Children’s National Hospital in Washington, DC. In 1984, she returned to Boston and joined the pharmacy staff at BCH. Shortly thereafter, she became a part of the Clinical Nutrition Service and completed a mini nutrition fellowship at the University of Florida. Dr. Gura was one of the first board-certified nutrition support pharmacists in Boston.

Dr. Gura, along with her research collaborator of over two decades, Mark Puder, MD, PhD, solved one of the most recalcitrant problems associated with the use of parenteral nutrition when they discovered that lipid injectable emulsions could be used to treat intestinal failure-associated liver disease (IFALD) in children under four. Because of her life-saving research, fish oil is now globally used to treat IFALD.

She has written more than 200 peer-reviewed papers and book chapters on intestinal failure-associated liver disease, intravenous lipid emulsions, compounding of sterile products, and the use of parenteral nutrition in the neonate.

Date & Time:

February 16, 2026

8:00 AM – 9:15 AM PT

Format:

In Person & Virtual

CE Credits:

1.0 Hours

UAN: JA0002345-0000-26-026-L99-P

Course level:

Intermediate/Advanced

session objectives:

What You'll Learn

Professional connections can do more than advance your career—they can save lives. Join ASPEN President Dr. Kathleen Gura as she shares three key patient care experiences that resulted from being an ASPEN member and networking with colleagues from around the world. Discover why the human connection remains one of the most powerful tools in clinical nutrition practice.

  • Describe how involvement in professional organizations improves patient care.
  • Analyze how products approved in other countries may be used off-label to treat life-threatening conditions.
  • Provide examples of how ASPEN drug shortage guidelines may be used by others to improve the care of patients outside the United States.
  • Describe one approach to identifying different treatment strategies when given a patient dilemma.

Topics & Presenters

Your Network is Your Net Worth: Membership in Professional Organizations Helps Innovate and Saves Lives

Kathleen Gura
PharmD, BCNSP, FASHP, FPPA, FASPEN, FMSHP

Pharmacy Clinical Research Program Manager

Department of Pharmacy/Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition , Boston Children’s Hospital

Assistant Professor of Pediatrics

Harvard Medical School

Boston, MA

Dudrick Research Symposium: The Protein Hype: Are We Getting it Right in Aging, Obesity, and Chronic Disease? (SU10)

General Session

Date & Time:

February 15, 2026

8:00 AM – 9:30 AM PT

Format:

In Person & Virtual

CE Credits:

1.5 Hours

UAN: JA0002345-0000-26-009-L01-P

Course level:

Advanced

session objectives:

What You'll Learn

Despite decades of research, protein recommendations for older adults and patients with acute and chronic disease remain generalized and often inadequate. Emerging evidence, spanning tracer methodology, body composition phenotyping, and functional outcomes, suggests that traditional approaches may fall short in meeting the needs of diverse clinical populations. This symposium brings together global leaders in protein metabolism and clinical nutrition to challenge current paradigms and present updated insights on protein requirements in aging, obesity, cancer, and critical illness.

The faculty will discuss translational approaches, including targeted nutrition interventions and strategies to implement higher protein targets in practice. This session aims to provide clinicians and researchers with the tools to personalize protein recommendations across clinical settings.

Learning Objectives:

  • Describe alterations in protein and amino acid metabolism that occur in obesity, weight loss and a spectrum of clinical conditions, including aging, critical illness, and recovery.
  • Determine protein requirements for those experiencing rapid weight loss to ensure preservation of lean mass and function.
  • Summarize protein targets for those with inflammation, inactivity, and disease-specific catabolic stressors.
  • Develop targeted nutrition interventions with higher protein targets for those experiencing muscle loss related to chronic diseases, including cancer.

Topics & Presenters

Protein and Amino Acids in Obesity: Friends, Foes?

Yves Boirie
MD, PhD

Human Nutrition Unit

Clermont Auvergne University

Clinical Nutrition Department

Clermont-Ferrand University Hospital

Clermont-Ferrand, France

Redefining Protein Requirements in Clinical Care: From Aging to Critical Illness

Nicolaas Deutz
MD, PhD, Distinguished FASN

Director for the Center for Translational Research in Aging and Longevity

College of Education and Human Development, Texas A&M University

Professor

Kinesiology and Sport Management, Texas A&M University

College Station, TX

Translating the Protein Science: Strategies to Personalize Intake and Preserve Muscle in Cancer

Carla Prado
PhD, RD, FCAHS

Professor and CAIP Chair in Nutrition

Food & Health, University of Alberta

Director

Human Nutrition Research Unit, University of Alberta

Edmonton, AB, Canada

Moderators:

Carla Prado

PhD, RD, FCAHS

Professor and CAIP Chair in Nutrition

Food & Health, University of Alberta

Director

Human Nutrition Research Unit, University of Alberta

Edmonton, AB, Canada

Keynote Address: What is the Future of Nutrition Education?  The Next Generation Speaks and the Clinician Responds! (SA10)

General Session

Date & Time:

February 14, 2026

1:00 PM – 2:15 PM PT

Format:

In Person & Virtual

CE Credits:

1.0 Hours

UAN: JA0002345-0000-26-002-L99-P

Course level:

Intermediate

session objectives:

What You'll Learn

Join us for the kick-off of ASPEN26 with Smriti Mehta and Dr. Maria Mascarenhas who will address the future of nutrition education.

Ms. Mehta is a student and community health advocate passionate about making nutrition education accessible and evidence-based. As Chair of the Pleasanton Unified School District’s Nutrition Committee, she has led policy changes reaching thousands of students, from introducing healthier breakfast options like overnight oats to launching a districtwide Nutrition Week. She is also the founder of BiteBalanced, a blog with over 60,000 readers that explores the biochemical and socioeconomic factors shaping food choices, and the author of Ella Eats, a children’s book that promotes healthy habits at a young age. Smriti’s work connects nutritional science, behavioral research, and policy design to build healthier, more equitable food systems.

Dr. Mascarenhas is a pediatric gastroenterologist in the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology, and Nutrition at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and a Professor of Pediatrics at the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania.

She is currently the Section Chief of Nutrition in the Division of Gastroenterology, Hepatology and Nutrition, Medical Director of the Clinical Nutrition Department, and Medical Director of the Integrative Health Program.

Dr Mascarenhas received her medical degree from St John’s Medical College in India and completed her pediatric training at Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn and Texas Children’s Hospital in Houston. She completed her fellowship in Pediatric Gastroenterology and Nutrition at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia and a fellowship in Integrative Medicine at the Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine. Additional trainings include pediatric massage and clinical hypnosis. She is board-certified in Pediatrics, Nutrition and Pediatric Gastroenterology.

Dr Mascarenhas is an experienced clinician, educator, international speaker and is widely published. Her research areas include cystic fibrosis, nutrition support, 22q11.2 deletion syndrome and integrative medicine.

Learning Objectives:

  • Explain the societal costs of poor nutrition, including effects on learning outcomes and healthcare spending.
  • Summarize how community-based nutrition programs (such as the Edible Schoolyard) apply interprofessional approaches that integrate education, public health, and clinical prevention.
  • Develop the view that healthcare team education in nutrition education is an essential component of improving population health and reducing disease burden.
  • Describe the scientific foundations of integrative nutrition and the role of food as medicine in promoting health and managing disease.
  • Identify the role of cultural practices on dietary patterns and their implications for patient-centered nutritional care.
  • Apply evidence-based integrative nutrition strategies, including food-as-medicine approaches, to clinical practice for improved patient outcomes.

Topics & Presenters

Redefining Health: Why Nutrition Education Matters

Smriti Mehta

Student and Community Health Advocate

Pleasanton, CA

Integrative Nutrition: Evidence-Based Foundations, Cultural Perspectives, and Clinical Practice

Maria Mascarenhas
Maria Mascarenhas
MBBS

Medical Director

Integrative Health Program, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Section Chief

Nutrition, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia

Professor of Pediatrics

Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphia, PA

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