World Juvenile Arthritis Day: Reflecting on Progress, Support, and the JIA Journey
- vanessavanderhoek
- Mar 18, 2022
- 2 min read
Updated: Feb 10
Each year on 18 March, we mark World Juvenile Arthritis Day.
This year, I’m taking a moment to celebrate — not because the journey with JIA is ever easy, but because progress, awareness, and support are growing.
Juvenile arthritis often doesn’t receive the attention it deserves. It’s frequently invisible, commonly misunderstood, and still stereotyped as an “older person’s condition.” Many families are left navigating complex decisions while trying to support their child safely alongside medical care.
Over the past decade, research into areas such as nutrition, gut health, and immune regulation in children with JIA has continued to evolve. While these approaches are not a replacement for medical treatment, they can play a supportive role when used thoughtfully and cautiously — something that isn’t always clearly explained to parents.
This gap is what led me to develop A Functional Nutrition Approach: The Parent’s Roadmap to JIA. The program is designed to support families with clear guidance, realistic expectations, and strong foundations — without extremes or unrealistic promises. It’s the resource I wish had existed when we were first navigating JIA as a family.
I also share free educational resources for parents who are looking to better understand their options, including:
Free webinar: The Top 3 Ways To Support Your Child’s JIA Naturally Without Going Against Your Doctor’s Advice by clicking here.
Downloadable eBook: The 5 Things I Wish I Knew When My Daughter Was Diagnosed with JIA eBook by clicking here.
Podcast: A Functional Approach to JIA with Andrew Whitfield Cook (video below).
My response to the Australian Government’s Inquiry Into Childhood Rheumatic Diseases: click here - I’m response 119.
Parent's Review: click here to watch her testimonial of the program.
If you’re unsure where to start, there are a few different ways to work with me depending on what suits your child and family best. You can explore those options by clicking here.
And if you know another family impacted by JIA, please feel free to share this article — awareness and connection matter.
Vanessa Vanderhoek is an integrative & functional medicine nutritionist specialising in the gut microbiome, biochemistry and nutrigenomics. She supports parents to help their children with JIA, so they can regain their health (whatever that looks like for them, it's different for each child) by taking an approach that's unique to their body.
Whilst based in Canberra (Australia), Vanessa sees clients around the world in her virtual clinic. Get started by clicking here.
