Make eating easy

Discover the right food pyramid for your little one to ensure she gets a perfectly balanced diet.

Giving your toddler the nutrition she needs is not as hard as it might sound. Food gives us the energy needed to carry out daily tasks, and, for toddlers, the energy needed to grow. This growing process requires a lot of fuel, so you may be surprised how much food your toddler consumes. The best measure of how much food your toddler needs is her appetite. She may appear very hungry one day and less so the next; her appetite is variable at this stage. Provided you offer a wellbalanced, healthy diet, and pay attention to your child’s response of ”hungry” and “full” cues, you can be pretty sure she is eating enough.

WHAT IS A BALANCED DIET?

A variety of foods, eaten in moderation, best describes a balanced diet. Different types of food provide our bodies with the different nutrients needed to maintain our health. Missing out any important food group can lead to poor health and illness.

Children need a good-quality diet more than adults, as their bodies are growing. If they survive on cakes, biscuits and chips, they will be missing out on vital vitamins and minerals. At the same time, a diet consisting solely of fruit and vegetables is not good for a growing child, as they need protein, fats and starch to give them kilojoules for energy.

Babies and young toddlers need a healthy, balanced diet with lots of fresh fruit and vegetables and whole grain carbohydrates. This will provide them with enough fuel necessary for proper growth and to ensure enough energy to be active. The key to a healthy diet for your toddler is moderation – try not to provide too much or too little of one food.

NUTRITION IN A NUTSHELL

There are five basic food groups. Each food group provides unique nutrients that cannot be found in other sources. This is why it is important to feed your toddler choices from each food group every day. Here is what your toddler needs daily:

■ DAIRY Products such as milk, cheese and yoghurt contain protein and calcium, which are used to build up the body, repair damage and for the growth of bones and teeth. Toddlers need two to three servings each day. Young children should be given full-fat milk, as fat-free, skim or low-fat milk do not provide the nutrients and kilojoules needed for growth and energy. After the age of 2 or 3 years, you can begin to use these reduced-fat varieties. If your toddler goes off milk, offer cheese, milky puddings or cereals with lots of milk and yoghurt instead.

■ FATS AND OILS are essential for protecting and insulating vital organs, but too many can be harmful. Vegetable oils such as sunflower and olive oils can be used; fried, fatty foods should be avoided completely.

■ PROTEIN includes meat, chicken, fish, eggs and beans. This category contains iron and vitamin D, which help make muscles and tissue. Choose lean cuts wherever possible to reduce your toddler’s intake of saturated fats. Toddlers need two servings from this category each day.

■ BREAD AND CEREALS include pasta, rice and potatoes, which provide energy and some nutrients. Try to choose whole grain varieties, as these are richer in fibre and nutrients. Toddlers need four to six servings from this category each day.

■ FRUIT AND VEGETABLES contain many vitamins and minerals and provide sufficient fibre to keep their bowels working properly. Avoid over cooking vegetables, as this destroys many of the nutrients. Frozen vegetables are as good as fresh and much better than tinned, as these have lost much of their nutritional value. Raw fruit and vegetables are the best. Toddlers need two to three servings each of fruit and vegetables per day.

Feeding your toddler may seem like a complicated process, but if you offer a nutritionally balanced diet, she will grow up healthy and strong.