Toddler Food Groups

It’s all about the right balance!

Now that your baby is one, they’ll be full of energy and eager to explore the world around them. To meet the needs of their busy lifestyle and support their rapid growth, toddlers require more nutrients relative to their size that we do as adults. But because their tums are tiny, it is almost impossible for them to meet their nutritional needs from three meals alone, which is why healthy snacks play an important role in a little one’s diet.

To strike the right balance of nutrients, their diets should be made up of a variety of foods from each of the four food groups.

(Appetites can vary from day to day and meal to meal, so allow little ones to eat to their appetite).

Here is a recommended typical day on a plate for baby:

• x5 portions of starchy food
• x5 portions of food and vegetables
• x3 portions of dairy
• x2 portions of protein (x3 if child is vegetarian)
• And 6-8 glasses of water!

(source: Nutrition.org.uk)