A healthy, balanced diet for children 2 years old

A healthy, balanced diet for children 2 years old

Children up to two years old should eat three meals a day, alternating one or two snacks. Children can eat the same food as the adults in the family. At this stage when language and communication skills improve, your child can become an active participant at mealtimes if given the opportunity to eat with others. Check out our 2-year-old diet suggestion.

 

Diet for children 2 years old

Do not quantify food.

Don't make the meal a battle.

Develop healthy eating habits - including eating with everyone at mealtime.

Choose healthy foods.

Food is not safe for children

At the age of 2, your child may know how to use a spoon, drink from a cup, and "scoop" a variety of foods. However, babies are still learning to chew and swallow and can swallow food while busy playing. For that reason, the risk of suffocation is very high.

Avoid the following foods because your baby can swallow and block the airway :

Sausage (unless cut into small pieces)

Whole cheese / butter (butter should be spread thinly on bread or crackers, but don't give the whole piece of butter to the child)

Peanut

Cherry

Hard candies

Gum

Whole grapes, cherry tomatoes (should be chopped)

Mashmallow

Raw carrots, celery, green beans

Popcorn

Nuts - like squash seeds, sunflower seeds

Large pieces of food like meat, potatoes or vegetables

Diet for a picky 2-year-old child

Make sure your child eats the four basic food groups each day:

Meat, fish, poultry, eggs

Milk, cheese and other dairy products

Fruits and vegetables

Cereals, potatoes, rice, flour

 

Diet for children 2 years old - Children need to eat all 4 main food groups

Don't worry if your child won't cooperate. Many 2-year-olds insist on not eating a certain food - or just one or two of their favorite foods. The more you try to force your baby to eat, the more determined he or she will challenge you.

Offer a variety of foods and let your child choose. Eventually your baby will create a balancing regime for himself. 2-year-olds also love to feed on their own, so whenever possible, let them "pick up" instead of cooked food with a spoon.

When do babies need nutritional supplements?

 

2-year-old diet - You can let your baby "pick up"

Usually 2-year-olds hardly need vitamin supplements. Because the diets for 2-year-olds are quite diverse. However, iron supplements may be needed if your child eats very little meat, iron-rich grains, or iron-rich vegetables. Large amounts of milk (more than 960 ml per day) can also affect iron absorption, thereby increasing the risk of iron deficiency anemia.

Every day, babies should only drink about 480 ml low-fat or fat-free milk. This will provide most of the calcium needed for bone development without losing your baby's appetite - especially foods that provide iron.

Note: The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that children drink whole milk until two years of age - unless there is a special reason to drink low-fat milk earlier. Whole milk contains about 4% fat. Gradually your baby will be able to switch from whole milk to low-fat milk. Therefore, many pediatricians recommend that children reduce the amount of fat in milk (2%) for several weeks before switching to low-fat (1%) or non-fat milk .

According to the AAP Clinical Report, Optimizing Bone Development in Children and Adolescents, infants under 12 months need 400 international units (IU) of vitamin D per day. Older children and teenagers need 600 IU per day. This amount of vitamin D can prevent rickets - making bones soft and weak . If your child is not regularly exposed to sunlight or is not eating enough vitamin D, consult your pediatrician for supplementation.