Toddlers, just like older children and adults, have specific nutritional needs. As parents, it is your job to make sure that your toddler is having his nutritional needs met. You decide what foods that he can eat. You decide when he can eat. Your child, however, also plays a role in his nutrition. He decides whether he will eat and how much.

The days of the “clean plate club” are, for the most part, part of a bygone era. The epidemic of childhood obesity has convinced many parents that forcing their child to eat every morsel on their plate may not be the best approach. Yet, parents still have to make sure that children are getting enough to eat, and getting the right things to eat.

A good diet for a toddler should be balanced. A toddler should be able to choose from a variety of fruits, vegetables, breads, cereals, meat, fish, eggs, chicken, milk, and cheeses each and every day. Diets that are low in fat, while often recommended for adults, are not necessarily appropriate for children.

Getting enough vegetables can be an especially difficult task for a toddler. While there will be many vegetables, for example, that your toddler does not like to eat, there will almost always be a few that he does like to eat. When you discover these, make use of them.

Snack time is often the time that many toddlers eat some of the worst foods for them, such as foods that have high calories and low nutritional value. Some health snacks can include fruit, cheese cubes, salsa, yogurt, rice cakes, crackers with cheese, and vegetable sticks. Treats that are high in sugar should be avoided if possible, or at least kept to a minimum.

In addition, you can help your toddler to eat healthy by having positive eating habits. This includes not eating in front of the TV, offering new foods, being relaxed at mealtime, and being a good role model yourself. If your toddler sees that you are eating healthy, she is more likely to want to eat healthy.

Posted in Baby and Toddler

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