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Early childhood nutrition plays a vital role in a child’s physical and cognitive development. During these formative years, children undergo rapid growth and need proper nourishment to thrive. Starting at around six months, when children begin eating solid foods, there’s a unique opportunity to teach healthy eating habits that can last a lifetime.
In this article, we'll explore age-appropriate nutrition guidelines, practical meal planning strategies, and tips for creating a positive food environment.
Early childhood nutrition guidelines
To create a balanced and effective nutrition plan, it’s important to understand the established standards. These guidelines, often based on recommendations from organizations like the USDA, provide a framework for meeting the dietary needs of young children.
Age-appropriate nutrition standards
Children's nutritional needs change rapidly as they grow. A one-size-fits-all approach won't work. Here’s a breakdown of what children generally need at different stages:
- Infants (6-12 months): Once solids are introduced, focus on iron-rich foods like puréed meats and iron-fortified cereals. Introduce a variety of single-ingredient puréed fruits, vegetables, and grains to monitor for allergies.
- Toddlers (1-3 years): This stage can be marked by picky eating. Offer a variety of healthy foods from all food groups, including whole grains, proteins, fruits, vegetables, and dairy. Calcium and Vitamin D are crucial for bone development.
- Preschoolers (3-5 years): Energy needs increase as children become more active. Continue offering a balanced diet with an emphasis on fiber-rich fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Encourage them to try new foods, but don't force them.
Importance of early childhood nutrition
Eating the right food during early childhood supports children’s overall development. There are so many benefits of good early childhood nutrition and consequences for a lack of it. It’s important for childcare providers to understand why it needs to be a priority. Here are some reasons why nutrition is important in early childhood development.
Promotes healthy, holistic growth and development
When children have a nutritious and balanced diet, rich in vitamins, minerals, protein, healthy fats, and carbohydrates, they can stay healthy and reach their growth and development milestones. A healthy diet boosts children’s immune systems and lowers the risk of diabetes and cardiovascular diseases, making a balanced diet extremely important to a child’s overall health.
Supports muscle growth and development
A protein-rich diet is crucial for building strong and healthy muscles in children. Children should eat foods rich in essential amino acids as they promote muscle growth and development. Amino acids also ensure that the body doesn’t use muscles as a source of calories during physical activities. Common protein sources include eggs, beans, lean meats, fish, tofu, nuts and seeds, and low-fat dairy products.
While not a direct source like protein, carbohydrates and fats also support muscle growth and development. However, they are primarily used to produce energy for the body. This prevents the body from breaking down what’s stored in the muscles. Healthy sources of carbohydrates and fats include sweet potatoes, whole grain bread and pasta, avocados, fish, nuts, and whole eggs.
Fosters weight management
Good nutrition supports a healthy weight by helping the body shed excess weight. Foods rich in nutrients help prevent food cravings, which are often the result of eating processed foods. Most processed foods are deficient in nutrients and often trigger the desire to eat foods that are low in nutritional value. Eating too much of these types of foods often leads to weight gain.
Good nutrition includes fiber, which fills the stomach, preventing cravings and making the stomach feel full longer. Encouraging children to eat snacks that are rich in fiber will help them to have sustained energy and maintain a healthy weight.
Strengthens bones
Children need strong bones to support physical activities like running and jumping. Strong bones also support the development of gross and fine motor skills.
Eating foods rich in calcium helps support children’s growing bones and can prevent bone weakness later in life. Foods like milk, cheese, yogurt, beans, and leafy green vegetables are all good sources of calcium.
Aids brain development
A nutritious diet, including getting enough iron, is important for brain growth and development. Cognitive deficits are often linked to iron deficiency in young children. This is because brain development indirectly relies on iron. Iron in the body maintains enough oxygen-carrying red blood cells responsible for brain growth and development.
Preschoolers need 7 to 10 mg of iron daily. Foods rich in iron include beef, pork, poultry, seafood, tofu, dried beans and peas, dried fruits, leafy dark green vegetables, and iron-fortified breakfast cereals and bread.
Streamline your meal tracking and parent communication with brightwheel’s meal logging features. Easily share menu updates and daily food intake with families.
Nutritious meal planning for childcare programs
Thoughtful meal planning is the cornerstone of a successful nutrition program. It ensures children receive a variety of nutrients throughout the week and helps you manage your budget and resources effectively.
Weekly menu development
Developing a weekly menu helps you streamline grocery shopping and daily prep. When creating your menu, aim to:
- Incorporate variety: Rotate through different fruits, vegetables, lean proteins, and whole grains.
- Plan for color: A colorful plate is usually a nutritious one. Include a mix of red, green, orange, and yellow foods.
- Consider textures: Offer a mix of soft, crunchy, and chewy foods to keep meals interesting.
- Read labels: Pay attention to sugar, sodium, and fat content in packaged foods.
Portion size guidelines
Serving appropriate portion sizes is just as important as choosing the right foods. Overly large portions can contribute to overeating, while portions that are too small can leave a child hungry. The USDA provides helpful portion size guidelines for young children:
- Toddlers (1-3 years): Generally require smaller portions, such as 1/4 slice of bread, 1-2 tablespoons of vegetables, and 1 ounce of meat.
- Preschoolers (4-5 years): Portions can increase slightly, for example, to 1/2 slice of bread, 1/4 cup of vegetables, and 1.5 ounces of meat.
Remember, these are just guidelines. It's important to encourage children to listen to their own hunger cues.
How to teach children about nutrition
As a childcare provider, you spend a lot of time with your children and play a critical role in their development. You have the opportunity to help them develop healthy eating habits that could stay with them throughout adulthood. Here are some strategies for instilling healthy eating habits in children:
Eat together
Join the children during mealtimes and share the same healthy foods they are eating. This creates a positive mealtime atmosphere, encourages healthy eating habits, and helps children learn through observation and interaction. Sharing meals also fosters a sense of connection and reinforces the importance of nutritious choices.
Provide healthy snacks
Stick to a snack time routine in your schedule to keep children full and energized between meals. Provide plenty of healthy snack options that feature a variety of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean protein. Since snack portions are often smaller than meals, this can be a good time to introduce children to new flavors and textures that can later be incorporated into meal time.
Involve children in prep
Let children help with age-appropriate tasks like washing vegetables or setting the table. This can make them more excited to eat the food they helped prepare.
Avoid pressure
Children can be picky sometimes. Never force a child to eat. Instead, encourage them to try one bite. Eventually, most children will usually open up to healthier choices.
Talk positively about food
Avoid labeling foods as "good" or "bad." Instead, talk about how different foods help our bodies grow strong and stay healthy.
Share easy-to-follow nutrition guidelines
Providing simple nutrition guidelines can teach your preschoolers about healthy eating. Start with guidelines that show the importance of eating breakfast and why they should never skip it. Other basic nutrition guidelines you can introduce include the importance of drinking water and portion control.
Fill your dramatic play area with various food groups
The dramatic play area is an important learning environment for preschoolers, and you can use this area to teach children new concepts, like the importance of good nutrition. Filling your dramatic play area with items from various food groups helps reinforce balanced nutrition.
Encourage and support active play
Active play and nutrition go hand-in-hand since they’re responsible for overall cognitive, social-emotional, and physical development. Explain to children how physical activity through play can build strong bodies and prevent them from getting sick. Playing hopscotch, running, dancing, and jumping on a trampoline are developmentally appropriate active play activities for preschoolers.
Common early childhood nutrition challenges
Even with the best plans, you'll likely face some challenges.
- Picky eating: This is a normal developmental stage. Continue offering a variety of healthy options without pressure. It can take multiple exposures before a child tries a new food.
- Food allergies: It is critical to have a clear plan for managing food allergies. This includes knowing which children have allergies, understanding cross-contamination risks, and having an emergency plan in place. Ensure all staff are trained and communicate clearly with parents.
- Budget constraints: Serving healthy food on a budget is possible. Focus on seasonal produce, buy in bulk when appropriate, and minimize food waste by using leftovers creatively. Programs like the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) can also provide financial assistance.
Explaining healthy eating to children
Helping children to understand good eating habits isn’t just one conversation; it’s a daily practice. You aren’t just teaching them how to eat healthy foods; you’re also teaching them to have a healthy relationship with food. So, using different nutrition-focused activities and practices over time will give them an understanding of good nutrition.
Here are some ideas to explain healthy eating to children:
- Read the nutrition facts of different foods with children, so they understand how to identify healthy foods
- Challenge children to make the most colorful plate possible when they’re choosing meals and snacks
- Educate them on the “powers” that different vitamins and minerals have and how they can help their bodies grow big and strong
- If you have the space, plant a garden and show children how to grow fruits, vegetables, and herbs
- Keep fresh fruit on hand and easily visible, so it becomes the first choice for snacking
- Use food as art to make it more appealing and fun before eating it
- Involve children in the selection of food for the day, the preparation of those foods, and the clean up after eating
- Incorporate veggies into a variety of food forms to ease them into a child’s diet, such as spiralizing broccoli or baking zucchini into muffins
- Share nutrition education activities and habits with families so they can adopt them at home
Prioritizing nutrition for a healthier future
Providing excellent early childhood nutrition is a powerful way to support the development of the children in your care. By understanding their needs, planning thoughtful meals, and fostering a positive relationship with food, you are giving them an incredible gift.
Start by reviewing your current menu and identifying one or two small changes you can make this week. Whether it's introducing a new vegetable or involving children in meal prep, every step you take helps build a foundation for a healthier future.
