When your child starts to shift from formula or milk to “real” food, things can sometimes get complicated. You just had an extended period where every meal for them was ready to go and simple to put together, because the only real ingredient was milk. Now, you are entering a timeframe where not only do they need balanced meals, but they can oftentimes fight you on what these meals look like. It’s nothing you may be doing wrong either. Toddlers are complex. Their bodies are changing and growing in ways they do not understand and can barely keep up with. On top of that, some of them enjoy milk/formula and do not understand why you are trying to get them to eat new things. Have no fear, you are not alone.
In this article, we are going to discuss what toddler nutrition is, why it is important, and how we can better navigate this seemingly impossible task. This is something that can be daunting for most parents, but can also be helped with just a little extra information. The more information that we have, the more likely we are to not be so stressed and therefore better understand and assist our child’s development. The goal of this article is to assist you in making the best decisions when it comes to your child’s nutrition.
Jump to Sections:
- Understanding Toddler Nutrition
- How Much Should My Toddler Eat?
- Encouraging Picky Eaters
- Sneaking in Healthy Foods
- Meal Planning Tips for Busy Parents
- Our Take
- Sources and Further Reading
Understanding Toddler Nutrition
There are certain requirements when it comes to toddler nutrition, and rightfully so. Toddlers are growing at a rate that puts a lot of demand on their bodies. This strain is alleviated with proper nutrition. A balanced diet can contribute to better cognitive, physical, and social development.
Nutrients
Nutrients found in their daily diets, such as proteins, healthy fats, and carbohydrates are crucial for the growth and repair of muscles and tissues. It is also a primary source of their energy. I know what you are thinking: “My child has enough energy already!”. I can relate. However, they need that energy to fight sickness, recover when they fall and scrape their knee, and the list goes on.
Vitamins and Minerals
Vitamins and minerals, that are found in just about every food we consume, are what give us a strong immune system, teeth, bones, and all of the development that goes along with them. Toddlers need this just as much, if not more. Their bones are growing, their teeth are growing, and their immune system is growing. Everything for them is currently developing. Nutrients, vitamins, and minerals give them all the help they need to develop smoothly. A proper diet can give them all of those things.
Healthy Habits
In addition to nutrients and vitamins, a proper diet also gives children an increased likelihood to carry healthy habits with them into adulthood. How can what toddlers eat now change their adult life? Well, a study conducted by John Hopkins found that nearly 60% of children who were raised on a balanced diet of fruits, veggies, and proteins, still ate a fairly balanced diet. Life gets harder as we get older. We take on more responsibility and our schedules become full rather quickly. Diet is usually the first thing to go. If those habits are engrained in us from an early age, our diet may not suffer when we are older.
Side Note: Of course, not all situations are the same and the study still has around 40% that have dieting issues in adulthood. The point of the study was to show how parents teach their children about nutrition matters. Maybe not 100% of the time, but 60% still sounds alright to me. Enough so, that I hope we, collectively, strive to be better about setting nutritional examples for our children.
If you are interested in the different physical and mental growth milestones your child is going through during this period, I highly suggest you check out this article on sensorimotor development. The nutrition we are talking about here is directly influencing the skills and development that we talk about in our other article. A great read to help solidify the importance of this information.
Related Article: Sensorimotor Development Stages
How Much Should My Toddler Eat?
Toddlers should consume anywhere from 1,000 to 1,400 calories a day. Their stomachs are much smaller than adults so meals should also be more frequent and smaller portioned for them to handle.
Why a calorie range? Why not just a standard 1,200 calories for all toddlers? Well, that is a question that took me way too long to find an answer to, but here is why: all toddlers are different. Some toddlers grow faster, are more active, and simply just like eating a little more than others. All of these things are perfectly fine!
It can be easy to make parenting tasks, such as toddler nutrition, this big, scary event. However, it should be a simple and relaxing daily task for parents and their toddlers. If your child is getting a balanced meal and is not complaining about hunger, research shows you are doing a great job. So, don’t sweat it if they only got 900 calories yesterday, everything will be alright.
Food Groups and Portion Sizes
Use the chart below to get an idea of what servings and serving sizes can look like for different food groups. Emphasis on the word: idea. This chart is a rough collection of different snack and meal ideas and is by no means the law when it comes to what you can and cannot give your child. If you are concerned about foods NOT to give your child, check out this link from the CDC for more information.
How to Avoid Overwhelming
When we sit down for dinner as adults, our entire plate is typically full or almost full. This seems normal and just how a meal should be. Each food group is somewhat divided and it makes for a pretty plate.
For toddlers, this can be overwhelming. What we think is a pretty plate, can be too much for them to handle. We have to remember that food is new to them. They are used to having one or two things to eat (milk, formula, cereal), so throwing vegetables, fruits, and protein on one plate is hard to understand.
Below are two pictures. The one on the left is what most adults would consider a normal plate. The one on the right is a plate more geared for your child. I would like to point out that not all toddlers require a plate that looks like the second, but it is a great idea if your child is having a hard time eating at the dinner table (or highchair).
Related Article: Baby Sign Language
Side note: Giving them less food to start with and only giving them more if they want it or you feel that they need it, can significantly reduce food waste in your household. We know it can be tough to discard food that they just played with and never ate. Maybe this can help!
Encouraging Picky Eaters
A new hurdle that forms when your children reach toddlerhood is their ability to choose. This is great for their development and learning skills but can be hard to handle when that choosing ability turns into them being picky.
Being picky at the dinner table can lead to stressed-out parents, a messy high chair and surrounding area, and unfortunately, a hungry child. That last one just adds to the chaos. So, how do we combat picky eaters? Here are a few steps to try!
Introduce New Foods Regularly
Try introducing new foods alongside foods they already like and are familiar with. The majority of the time children are unsure and overwhelmed by new things and this causes them to avoid them entirely. It may be less about them being picky and more about them being unsure how to approach something new.
The association with foods they already know and love can take away most if not all, of that anxiety they have. Next time you are setting your child’s plate, give them something new and see how it goes.
Make Food Fun
Children have a pretty small attention span sometimes. Making food a fun event can help them stay focused and in the end, they might eat more.
Try cutting up food into cool shapes or use a cookie cutter to make awesome designs. It doesn’t have to be anything complex. The goal is to keep them engaged.
Offer a Variety of Textures
Toddlers are often more sensitive to textures than adults. Offer foods with a range of textures, such as crunchy, smooth, and soft, to help your child become more comfortable with different sensations.
Patience and Persistence
It can take several exposures to a new food before a child is willing to try it. Don’t give up, and continue offering the food in different ways or with different combinations.
Sneaking in Healthy Foods
Sometimes, despite our best efforts, our toddlers refuse to eat certain nutritious foods. In these cases, it can be helpful to get creative and “sneak” healthy ingredients into their favorite dishes. Here are some ideas to try:
- Blend leafy greens into smoothies: Spinach, watercress, and other leafy greens can easily be blended into fruit smoothies without affecting the taste.
- Puree vegetables into pasta sauces: Puree cooked vegetables like carrots, zucchini, or bell peppers and mix them into pasta sauces for a nutrient boost.
- Use whole grain flour in baked goods: Swap out some or all of the white flour in your favorite recipes for whole grain flour to increase the fiber content.
- Add beans and lentils into dishes: Beans and lentils can be added to soups, casseroles, and baked goods for added protein and fiber.
These are just a few ideas. There are probably thousands of great recipes that can “trick” your child into eating better. If you have them, share them with us on Facebook!
Meal Planning Tips for Busy Parents
Parents take on a plethora of responsibilities. Juggling work, home, and school life can be a lot to handle. Food and nutrition, unfortunately, get pushed to the side. Planning out meals in advance can save you a ton of stress and headache and can also guarantee that your family is still getting everything they need.
Here are a few tips to make preparing meals a little easier:
- Create a weekly meal plan: Set aside some time each week to plan out your toddler’s meals. This will help ensure you have all the necessary ingredients on hand and save you from last-minute meal prep stress.
- Batch cook: Cook large quantities of food that can be easily portioned and stored in the fridge or freezer. This way, you’ll always have a healthy meal option available for your toddler.
- Opt for quick and easy recipes: Find recipes that require minimal ingredients and can be prepared in 30 minutes or less. This will save you time and make weeknight dinners more manageable.
- Get your toddler involved: Encourage your child to help with meal planning and preparation. Not only will this teach them valuable life skills, but it will also make them more likely to eat what they’ve helped prepare. (This won’t work for everyone, but it is worth a try!)
Our Take
As a parent, I understand how difficult it can be to prepare meals, ensure they are toddler-worthy, and get them to eat it without throwing them or screaming. That’s why I wrote this post.
Too many times have I heard how stressed and scared parents are about how they are raising their children. There are so many social media accounts and websites shoving information (most of the time incorrect) and it can be a lot to handle. Even more so when they are new parents. Toddler nutrition is one of those topics.
Nutrition is tough for adults, even more, so for toddlers. However, it is overthought and overcomplicated. It doesn’t have to be some major ordeal every meal time and it certainly does not have to be a Gordon Ramsey-style meal for them at every turn. They just need a balanced diet, not a flawless one.
Of course, these are strictly my opinions based on my research and no one should take my word as the law, but I think two things need to happen. One, as parents we need to pat ourselves on the back a little more because most of us are doing a great job. Secondly, we need to stop overthinking every single part of our child’s growth and development. When we do that, research shows that we are more likely to mess it up. Sure, we may give them a “perfect meal plan” until they are 18 years old, but we never let them try new things, push boundaries, develop independence, and so forth.
I hope this article had some information that you can use to make better decisions. I also hope that it gave you some encouragement and peace of mind. If you liked it please share it and follow our Facebook page for updates on content just like this.
Below are the sources used in this article and some suggestions for further reading. I highly recommend that you check them out as they contain great information and perspectives on this very topic.
Sources
American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP)
Title: “Feeding & Nutrition Tips: Your 1-Year-Old”
Link: https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/toddler/nutrition/Pages/Feeding-and-Nutrition-Your-One-Year-Old.aspx
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
Title: “Toddler Nutrition”
Link: https://www.cdc.gov/nutrition/infantandtoddlernutrition/foods-and-drinks/toddler-nutrition.html
World Health Organization (WHO)
Title: “Infant and Young Child Feeding”
Link: https://www.who.int/health-topics/infant-and-young-child-feeding#tab=tab_1
Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
Title: “How to Feed a Picky Eater”
Link: https://www.eatright.org/health/pregnancy/breast-feeding/how-to-feed-a-picky-eater
Mayo Clinic
Title: “Toddler Food: Tips for Picky Eaters”
Link: https://www.mayoclinic.org/healthy-lifestyle/childrens-health/in-depth/toddler-food/art-20044736
U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)
Title: “MyPlate for My Family: SNAP Nutrition Education”
Link: https://www.fns.usda.gov/tn/myplate-my-family-snap-nutrition-education
Further Reading
Book Title: “Feeding the Whole Family: Whole Foods Recipes for Babies, Young Children, and Their Parents”
Author: Cynthia Lair
Link: https://www.amazon.com/Feeding-Whole-Family-Recipes-Children/dp/1632170594
Book Title: “The Pediatrician’s Guide to Feeding Babies and Toddlers: Practical Answers to Your Questions on Nutrition, Starting Solids, Allergies, Picky Eating, and More”
Authors: Anthony F. Porto, MD, MPH, and Dina M. DiMaggio, MD
Link: https://www.amazon.com/Pediatricians-Guide-Feeding-Babies-Toddlers/dp/1607749017
Book Title: “Fearless Feeding: How to Raise Healthy Eaters from High Chair to High School”
Authors: Jill Castle, MS, RDN, and Maryann Jacobsen, MS, RD
Link: https://www.amazon.com/Fearless-Feeding-Raise-Healthy-Eaters/dp/111830859X
