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Nutrition for Toddlers and Preschoolers

Children in their toddler and preschool year are very impressionable, which makes it the perfect time to help them form good eating habits. Children are never too young to establish a foundation of good nutrition and healthy eating habits.

Toddlers and preschoolers grow at a slower rate than infants. They need enough energy or calories to fuel their active play and their various stages of growth, but they do not need adult-size portions. Large portions can overwhelm their small appetites and are too big for their small stomachs. Servings for these children should be a quarter to a third the size of an adult portion. Children do not need as much food as an adult. They really only need enough to satisfy their hunger, so listen to their cues. When children say they are done, remove the food or let them leave the table.

Make mealtime enjoyable and pleasant for you and your child and not a source of constant struggle. To help make sure your child eats well, do not allow him or her to drink too many beverages at meals—such as milk, juice, or water—so that they are not hungry for solid foods. Refrain from forcing your child to eat when he or she is not hungry or from forcing unwanted foods. Also avoid giving large amounts of sweet desserts, soft drinks, fruit-flavored drinks, sugarcoated cereals, chips, or candy. These foods have little to no nutritional value and will fill a child up quickly, leaving little room for more nutritious foods.

The following tips can make mealtime more pleasant for both you and your child:

• Plan a quiet time before meals and snacks. Children tend to eat better if they are relaxed.
• Encourage children to sit at the table when they eat, and give them plenty of time to eat their meal.
• Even if you are not eating with your children, sit at the table with them. Young children should be supervised while they eat, to aid in encouragement and in case of choking.
• Don't use food as a reward or as a punishment. This can lead to unhealthy attitudes toward eating and food.
• Respect your children's food preferences, and let them choose or reject foods as adults or older children do.
• Get your children involved in preparing certain parts of the meal. Make every effort to make eating, and not watching television, the main focus of the family meal.
• Use child-size dishes and utensils that the child can handle with ease. Using too large a plate can be overwhelming.
• Offer foods with kid appeal. Younger children usually like plain, unmixed foods, as well as finger-foods that make eating easier.
• Offer plenty of variety from each of the food groups. If your children don't like spinach, don't assume they don't like vegetables. Just offer another vegetable.

Should I worry that my child is not getting enough to eat? Probably not. Children will generally eat when they are hungry and stop when they are full. Young children don't need a whole lot of food and will generally get what their body needs. If you are worried, speak to your pediatrician. How Much Food Is Enough?
Children do better on an eating schedule. Even though you should offer the child three balanced meals a day, they will probably only eat one or two. Because children have a limited stomach capacity, it is best to feed them five to six small daily meals. Plan nutritious snacks as part of the day's meal schedule. Children's appetites change from day to day, which is completely normal. To help stimulate a good appetite, children should be active and spend time outside in the fresh air. Children will not eat well if they are tired. Schedule mealtimes and playtimes accordingly. It doesn't take much to satisfy a child's small appetite, so plan meals well. If they snack right before a meal, their intake at that meal will not be as good. Children should not be given any food or drink within an hour and a half of a meal.

As long as a child is growing normally, he or she is getting enough calories. A child's food intake usually increases just before a growth spurt. Food Jags
Food jags are periods when children refuse foods that they previously liked, or when they repeatedly request a particular food at each meal. This behavior is commonly observed in toddlers and preschoolers between the ages of two to six. During these years, growth is slower and appetite tends to decrease. This can cause concern and frustration in parents who want to be sure the child is getting adequate nutrition. Children at this age show more interest in discovering the world around them than in the food they eat. Food jags can happen because the child is bored with the usual foods or is trying to discover a new independence.

The best way to handle a toddler's food jags is to remain low key. The more you focus on it, the longer the food jag may last. Being either too rigid or too accommodating will not help. Children cannot be forced to eat foods they do not want. Food preferences develop as a child is exposed to new foods in a calm, nonthreatening environment. Realize that this is a temporary situation and a normal part of the child's development. You still have control over what foods are offered to the child, so continue to offer a variety of foods and allow the child to make food choices from what is available. It is fine to offer the food they want again and again, as long as other foods are offered to encourage variety. They will probably become bored with the same food and begin eating others that are offered. Offer their favorite foods as well as substitutions for the foods they refuse. Children will meet all of their nutritional needs over several days' time.

Fact: Toddlers control very few things in their environment. When a child discovers how upsetting it can be to a parent when they refuse to eat or demand the same food at meals, eating behavior can become a powerful tool for getting attention.

Continue to offer healthy and nutritious foods, and plan mealtimes appropriately. When a child sits down to eat, step back and allow the child to control what he or she eats. This will enable your child to develop healthy eating behaviors. If a child refuses entire food groups for more than two weeks, talk to a doctor or registered dietitian.

Trying New Foods
Getting your child to try a new food can be frustrating. Keep in mind that taste is not the only factor that is important in a child's food acceptance. Temperature of food is also important. Most toddlers will do best with lukewarm foods.

To help your child try new foods, try the following tips:

• Offer just one new food at a time. Let the child know if the taste is sweet, sour, or salty.
• Let children taste a very small amount at first to see if they like it.
• Tell children that if they don't like it, they don't have to swallow it.
• Many young children have to be offered a food several times before they accept it. If they don't accept it the first time, try again later.
• Be a role mode! A caregiver who asks a child to drink milk or eat vegetables should be doing the same.
• When introducing a new food, seat the child with a sibling or friends who are good tasters and will eat the food.
• When serving a new food, serve it with one the child already likes.

The odor and presentation of food are also factors in whether the child will be open to trying a new food.