The 1 Thing You Need To Know When Feeding Toddlers
May 2020
Author:
Jennifer Anderson, MSPH, RDN
About Kids Eat in Color
Created by experts, Kids Eat in Color is the leading resource for families seeking evidence-based information and strategies on child nutrition and feeding.
As an Amazon Associate, Kids Eat in Color® earns from qualifying purchases made through affiliate links.
Author:
Jennifer Anderson, MSPH, RDN
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Inside: Feeding Toddlers can seem complicated, so this article will simplify everything into just 1 secret that you need to know. It will decrease food battles, help your toddler eat healthy, and reduce your stress.
“My child was such a great eater. He used to eat absolutely everything – any vegetable, fruit, dinner, breakfast. You name it, he would eat it. It was amazing” she proudly told me.
“Then he turned one and it was like I got a new kid. He wouldn’t eat anything at all! He started throwing food. Later he started throwing these crazy tantrums. He won’t eat any vegetables now. I don’t know where I went wrong, I feel like I failed my child.”
Sound familiar?
Feeding toddlers is tricky.
I know from personal experience with my own 2 kids and I’m a registered dietitian.
You can read whole books on feeding toddlers. But guess what?
There’s only 1 thing you need to know when feeding your child. One thing will completely change everything for you when you put it into practice. Ready?
Parents are in charge of meal structure and toddlers are in charge of their bodies.
You can stop reading now, but you may have some questions. Let’s unpack what this means for feeding toddlers in five parts.
Parents are in Charge of the Meal Structure for Feeding Toddlers
What does it mean that parents are in charge of meal structure? In fact, what in the world is “meal structure”?
Meal structure means everything about meals:
What food is served during meals and snacks
What food is in the house
When meals and snacks are served
How meals and snacks are served
Where meals and snacks are served
Basically, if it has to do with the when, where, what, and how of meals and snacks, it’s part of “meal structure.” When it comes to meal structure, rest assured, it’s your job. It’s a big job, I know! Those kids keep needing to eat every single day!
Let’s talk more specifically about what is part of the meal structure and how you are going to captain your meal structure ship.
Feed Toddlers on a Meal and Snack Schedule
While your child was an infant, you may have fed “on demand.” This means you watched for when your baby showed signs of hunger, and then you feed them.
That’s great! They were on the breast milk/formula ship, where liquid gold was available whenever and wherever they wanted. Lucky little darlings.
That all changes when babies join you on the solid food ship. On the solid food ship food is not available whenever and wherever you want. On the solid food ship, the parent sets the food schedule and it’s eating time when it’s eating time.
That means that you need to have a meal and snack schedule for your toddlers. Plan to feed your toddler every 2-3 hours. Have 3 meals and anywhere from 0-3 snacks.
Some kids don’t need snacks, but I find most toddlers need to be fed at least 1 snack per day, most have 2. Then there are some that need 3 snacks based on their schedule and situation. Don’t schedule more than 3 meals and 3 snacks a day.
You may run a “tight ship” with a very strict schedule, or you may run a “relaxed ship” where you have a strong routine, but you take a relaxed approach to the clock. Either can work, but stick to it so that your child knows when meals and snacks are coming.
And no, “grazing” is not helpful for your toddler. Grazing means that your child eats small frequent amounts throughout the day. This can cause kids to lose touch with their sense of hunger and fullness. It can contribute to cavities. It can cause them to eat foods that don’t nourish them.
Feeding on a schedule helps toddlers learn to be hungry and full, and to be hungry for nutritious meals.
On the solid food ship, the “cook” decides what is on the menu. It makes sense, right? The cook knows how to feed everyone to make sure they have healthy options. They know what food is on the ship and how much money is in the food budget. The cook went shopping and planned out the meals.
Toddlers don’t know what they need to eat in order to be healthy, happy kids.
A toddler planned meal may look like this.
As a parent, you may agree with me, that meal looks awesome! I also know my toddler would be a horrible mess if that is what they ate for lunch. They would be tantruming all afternoon long.
That’s why it’s not up to our toddler ship buddies to be the cooks. They get to eat, but not plan.
As the parent, it’s your job to decide what foods will be served at each meal.
This means that your toddler doesn’t get to decide. You may choose to offer them 2 choices sometimes. For example, “Would you like an apple or a pear?” That is the extent of it. They may cry or tantrum for the same food all day, and that’s okay. You’re still the cook on the ship though. They can express their opinion. You decide what you will offer.
When you are planning meals, you will decide what foods to make available to your toddler for them to choose from.
Here are a few nutrition guidelines to follow when you are planning what to serve for meals and snacks as well:
A protein food at every meal or snack (meat, beans, tofu, eggs, nut/seed butter, or dairy)
A green veggie every day
An orange veggie every day
A fat source at every meal and snack
A fruit and/or veggie at every meal and snack
2 servings of milk/dairy per day (or alternative)
Grains with at least half being whole grains
Make sure there is at least one food your child is comfortable with and likes most of the time as part of the meal
Meals toddlers will eat tend to meals that are fed to them using the exact techniques we are discussing right now. It’s less about the food and more about how toddlers are fed. That said, picky eating is a totally different topic and may not be related to how you are feeding your child.
You Decide Where Food is Served to Toddlers
On the solid food ship, food is only served in the eating place. That’s it! Decide where you will feed your child and feed them there.
Once toddlers learn to move, they often don’t want to sit for meals! That’s okay. Don’t expect them to stay for long. The food needs to be ready for them to eat as soon as they sit down.
Make sure your child is sitting for meals. It’s not safe for your child to be eating while away from the table or your normal eating place. Toddlers should only eat while seated.
Additionally, you want to make sure that you are doing the following things to make mealtime as successful as possible for your child. The following practices will make sure they are learning to eat nutritious foods, social skills and connecting with you:
Now that you’ve established the rules on the solid food ship, it’s time to talk about your child. While it’s your job to make the rules about mealtime, it’s your child’s responsibility to decide what happens with their body. Let’s look at what that means.
Toddlers Decide Whether To Eat Foods
When your toddler sits down to meals, they get to decide whether they will eat it or not.
You may have gone to a large effort to make sure there are plenty of nutritious foods on the table. Or you may have made a basic meal. Your job is done.
Now your toddler takes over and decides if they will eat all, some or none of the foods available at the meal. This is their choice and they should be given this choice with no pressure whatsoever.
I never recommend pressuring a child in any way. When you pressure a toddler, you get a battle, a tantrum, and a child who becomes more picky. It’s not going to give you what you were hoping for.
Instead, give them a calm table with family, nutritious options, and a meal schedule so that they are showing up to the table hungry.
They may decide not to eat and that is okay! They have another meal or snack right around the corner (thanks to that meal/snack schedule you have!)
You may feel like you know exactly how much food your child needs to eat in order to be healthy. Maybe you think your child is “too skinny” or “too stalky.” Let me assure you that babies, toddlers, and children come in all shapes and sizes. This means that it is not possible for you to tell if your child is eating the right amount of food by looking at them.
If you have a concern about your child’s weight, talk to your pediatrician about your child’s growth charts. If your child is verbal, don’t do this in front of your child. Do this over the phone or ask for an appointment where you can talk to them without your child present.
Do not try to change your toddler’s food portions based on how they look or what you think they need.
Toddlers will often eat “nothing” one day, and “as much as you” another day! This is typical toddler behavior. What they are doing is listening to what their body needs. Our bodies don’t need the same amount of food every day.
Feeding toddlers can be helpful for us adults, because they show us what healthy eating looks like. Healthy eating is listening to what our body needs each day. That may mean we eat a lot one day and hardly anything another day. Our body can tell us when we are hungry and when we are full. Toddlers are often good at listening to their bodies.
Parent Hang Ups With Feeding Toddlers
Parents often feel upset when they see their toddler eating only plain pasta as part of a meal. They may feel concerned, worried, or anxious when they see their toddler skip a meal. They may want to get up from the table and make something else, but that leads to chaos on the ship. It also can lead to feeding problems and picky eating.
Toddlers can be safe, happy, and healthy when they occasionally choose not to eat during a meal or snack. You, the parent, will provide another nutritious meal or snack for them in just a few hours or in the morning. They can drink water if they are thirsty in the meantime.
Feeding kids can be tricky, but if you set up your solid food ship with a strong structure and you allow your child to decide whether to eat and how much, you will have everything you need to keep sailing forward.
About Kids Eat in Color
Created by experts, Kids Eat in Color is the leading resource for families seeking evidence-based information and strategies on child nutrition and feeding.
Jennifer Anderson is a registered dietitian and has a masters of science in public health from Johns Hopkins School of Public Health. In 2019, she founded Kids Eat in Color®, a public health resource that improves child and family nutrition and mental health. Prior to starting Kids Eat in Color® she coordinated youth nutrition programs at a food bank, performed research in inner-city food deserts, and consulted for the USDA national office SNAP-Ed program. Her academic background is in public health nutrition, cultural anthropology, and economics.
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Inside: Feeding Toddlers can seem complicated, so this article will simplify everything into just 1 secret that you need to know. It will decrease food battles, help your toddler eat healthy, and reduce your stress.
“My child was such a great eater. He used to eat absolutely everything – any vegetable, fruit, dinner, breakfast. You name it, he would eat it. It was amazing” she proudly told me.
“Then he turned one and it was like I got a new kid. He wouldn’t eat anything at all! He started throwing food. Later he started throwing these crazy tantrums. He won’t eat any vegetables now. I don’t know where I went wrong, I feel like I failed my child.”
Sound familiar?
Feeding toddlers is tricky.
I know from personal experience with my own 2 kids and I’m a registered dietitian.
You can read whole books on feeding toddlers. But guess what?
There’s only 1 thing you need to know when feeding your child. One thing will completely change everything for you when you put it into practice. Ready?
Parents are in charge of meal structure and toddlers are in charge of their bodies.
This is called the Division of Responsibility, a term coined by Ellyn Satter.
You can stop reading now, but you may have some questions. Let’s unpack what this means for feeding toddlers in five parts.
Parents are in Charge of the Meal Structure for Feeding Toddlers
What does it mean that parents are in charge of meal structure? In fact, what in the world is “meal structure”?
Meal structure means everything about meals:
Basically, if it has to do with the when, where, what, and how of meals and snacks, it’s part of “meal structure.” When it comes to meal structure, rest assured, it’s your job. It’s a big job, I know! Those kids keep needing to eat every single day!
Let’s talk more specifically about what is part of the meal structure and how you are going to captain your meal structure ship.
Feed Toddlers on a Meal and Snack Schedule
While your child was an infant, you may have fed “on demand.” This means you watched for when your baby showed signs of hunger, and then you feed them.
That’s great! They were on the breast milk/formula ship, where liquid gold was available whenever and wherever they wanted. Lucky little darlings.
That all changes when babies join you on the solid food ship. On the solid food ship food is not available whenever and wherever you want. On the solid food ship, the parent sets the food schedule and it’s eating time when it’s eating time.
That means that you need to have a meal and snack schedule for your toddlers. Plan to feed your toddler every 2-3 hours. Have 3 meals and anywhere from 0-3 snacks.
Some kids don’t need snacks, but I find most toddlers need to be fed at least 1 snack per day, most have 2. Then there are some that need 3 snacks based on their schedule and situation. Don’t schedule more than 3 meals and 3 snacks a day.
You may run a “tight ship” with a very strict schedule, or you may run a “relaxed ship” where you have a strong routine, but you take a relaxed approach to the clock. Either can work, but stick to it so that your child knows when meals and snacks are coming.
And no, “grazing” is not helpful for your toddler. Grazing means that your child eats small frequent amounts throughout the day. This can cause kids to lose touch with their sense of hunger and fullness. It can contribute to cavities. It can cause them to eat foods that don’t nourish them.
Feeding on a schedule helps toddlers learn to be hungry and full, and to be hungry for nutritious meals.
Related: End Whining With This Simple Snack Hack
You Decide What to Feed Your Toddler
On the solid food ship, the “cook” decides what is on the menu. It makes sense, right? The cook knows how to feed everyone to make sure they have healthy options. They know what food is on the ship and how much money is in the food budget. The cook went shopping and planned out the meals.
Toddlers don’t know what they need to eat in order to be healthy, happy kids.
A toddler planned meal may look like this.
As a parent, you may agree with me, that meal looks awesome! I also know my toddler would be a horrible mess if that is what they ate for lunch. They would be tantruming all afternoon long.
That’s why it’s not up to our toddler ship buddies to be the cooks. They get to eat, but not plan.
As the parent, it’s your job to decide what foods will be served at each meal.
This means that your toddler doesn’t get to decide. You may choose to offer them 2 choices sometimes. For example, “Would you like an apple or a pear?” That is the extent of it. They may cry or tantrum for the same food all day, and that’s okay. You’re still the cook on the ship though. They can express their opinion. You decide what you will offer.
When you are planning meals, you will decide what foods to make available to your toddler for them to choose from.
Related: Need Help Menu Planning? Grab My Free Printable Shopping List & Meal Planner!
Simplified Nutrition Guide to Feeding Toddlers
Here are a few nutrition guidelines to follow when you are planning what to serve for meals and snacks as well:
Meals toddlers will eat tend to meals that are fed to them using the exact techniques we are discussing right now. It’s less about the food and more about how toddlers are fed. That said, picky eating is a totally different topic and may not be related to how you are feeding your child.
You Decide Where Food is Served to Toddlers
On the solid food ship, food is only served in the eating place. That’s it! Decide where you will feed your child and feed them there.
Once toddlers learn to move, they often don’t want to sit for meals! That’s okay. Don’t expect them to stay for long. The food needs to be ready for them to eat as soon as they sit down.
Make sure your child is sitting for meals. It’s not safe for your child to be eating while away from the table or your normal eating place. Toddlers should only eat while seated.
Additionally, you want to make sure that you are doing the following things to make mealtime as successful as possible for your child. The following practices will make sure they are learning to eat nutritious foods, social skills and connecting with you:
Related: The Ultimate Guide To End Toddler Throwing Food
Toddlers are in Charge of Feeding Their Bodies
Now that you’ve established the rules on the solid food ship, it’s time to talk about your child. While it’s your job to make the rules about mealtime, it’s your child’s responsibility to decide what happens with their body. Let’s look at what that means.
Toddlers Decide Whether To Eat Foods
When your toddler sits down to meals, they get to decide whether they will eat it or not.
You may have gone to a large effort to make sure there are plenty of nutritious foods on the table. Or you may have made a basic meal. Your job is done.
Now your toddler takes over and decides if they will eat all, some or none of the foods available at the meal. This is their choice and they should be given this choice with no pressure whatsoever.
I never recommend pressuring a child in any way. When you pressure a toddler, you get a battle, a tantrum, and a child who becomes more picky. It’s not going to give you what you were hoping for.
Instead, give them a calm table with family, nutritious options, and a meal schedule so that they are showing up to the table hungry.
They may decide not to eat and that is okay! They have another meal or snack right around the corner (thanks to that meal/snack schedule you have!)
Related: 5 Secrets For Turning Any Meal Into A Meal Toddlers Will Eat
Toddlers Decide How Much to Food to Eat
You may feel like you know exactly how much food your child needs to eat in order to be healthy. Maybe you think your child is “too skinny” or “too stalky.” Let me assure you that babies, toddlers, and children come in all shapes and sizes. This means that it is not possible for you to tell if your child is eating the right amount of food by looking at them.
If you have a concern about your child’s weight, talk to your pediatrician about your child’s growth charts. If your child is verbal, don’t do this in front of your child. Do this over the phone or ask for an appointment where you can talk to them without your child present.
Do not try to change your toddler’s food portions based on how they look or what you think they need.
Toddlers will often eat “nothing” one day, and “as much as you” another day! This is typical toddler behavior. What they are doing is listening to what their body needs. Our bodies don’t need the same amount of food every day.
Feeding toddlers can be helpful for us adults, because they show us what healthy eating looks like. Healthy eating is listening to what our body needs each day. That may mean we eat a lot one day and hardly anything another day. Our body can tell us when we are hungry and when we are full. Toddlers are often good at listening to their bodies.
Parent Hang Ups With Feeding Toddlers
Parents often feel upset when they see their toddler eating only plain pasta as part of a meal. They may feel concerned, worried, or anxious when they see their toddler skip a meal. They may want to get up from the table and make something else, but that leads to chaos on the ship. It also can lead to feeding problems and picky eating.
Toddlers can be safe, happy, and healthy when they occasionally choose not to eat during a meal or snack. You, the parent, will provide another nutritious meal or snack for them in just a few hours or in the morning. They can drink water if they are thirsty in the meantime.
Feeding kids can be tricky, but if you set up your solid food ship with a strong structure and you allow your child to decide whether to eat and how much, you will have everything you need to keep sailing forward.