Feeding Your Young Child (1-5 Years Old)

As your child transitions from baby to toddler and then preschooler, aim to offer them:

• 3 meals per day
• 2-3 snacks per day

Young children like a regular routine. Schedule meals and snacks at about the same times every day so your child comes to meals ready to eat.

You can help your child develop good eating routines by having family meals. A family meal is when you all sit together and share the same food. The meal doesn’t have to be at a table, and it doesn’t have to be fancy.

Families that eat together, eat better! Eating together as a family can help your child:

• Explore new foods.
• Learn to like a variety of foods.
• Learn to enjoy your time together.

Tips for family-friendly meals:

• Make mealtimes pleasant and relaxed.
• Make time for meals.
• Include your child at the family table where they can see you eating and learn about foods and how to feed themselves.
• Offer familiar foods along with new foods and give your child time to explore foods without any pressure to eat.

For more tips, check out the Family Meals page.

Offer your child the same foods you serve the rest of the family. Children under four years of age are still learning to chew and swallow effectively so you may need to cut up or prepare some foods differently to reduce their risk of choking. Check out Healthy Eating for Your Toddler Age 12-24 Months to learn how to reduce choking risk.

Use Canada’s Food Guide to plan meals and snacks for your family. Offer foods with a variety of tastes, textures, and colours, including:

• Vegetables and fruit
• Whole grain foods
• Protein foods

Include foods with healthy fats at meals and snacks. This can help your child meet their energy and nutrient needs. Healthy fats are also important for your child’s development.

Allow your child to experience a food’s natural flavour by preparing foods with little or no added:

• Salt (sodium)
• Sugar
• Saturated fat

Offer your child water for thirst. They do not need sugary drinks such as:

• 100% fruit juice
• Soft drinks
• Fruit drinks and punches
• Sweetened milks
• Sports drinks
• Sweetened waters

For more information, check out Canada’s Food Guide’s Healthy Eating for Parents and Children page.

Let your child’s appetite be your guide to how much food to offer. Young children often have small appetites, so start with a small amount and offer more if they want it. Serving too much food at once can make your child feel like not eating at all.

Check out the Raising Your Child to Eat Well page for more information.

Many parents worry that their child is a picky eater, but what parents sometimes see as challenges are usually normal child behaviours. Most young children are more or less picky about food because all foods are new, and they are just beginning to learn about food and eating.

Be patient and let your child explore new foods. They need time and experience!

For more information, check out Raising Your Child to Eat Well.

Children aged five and under are at a higher risk for food poisoning and related health complications. Check out Safe Food Handling for Children Ages 5 and Under to learn how to reduce your child’s risk of food poisoning.

While fish is a good source of nutrients for young children, some can have high levels of mercury. Limit fish that are high in mercury, like:

• Tuna
• Shark
• Swordfish
• Marlin
• Orange roughy
• Escolar

Check out Mercury in Fish – Questions and Answers to learn more.

Iron is an important nutrient to help your toddler grow and develop. From 12 to 24 months of age, offer iron-rich foods at each meal. Iron-rich foods include:

• Meats, poultry, fish, and wild game
• Eggs
• Legumes such as beans
• Tofu
• Peanut butter and other nut butters
• Iron-fortified infant cereals
• Iron-fortified ready-to-eat breakfast cereals

If you’re breastfeeding your toddler, your breastmilk meets all their milk needs. Continue to give them a daily vitamin D supplement of 400 IU (10 µg) until they are 24 months old, or they stop breastfeeding completely.

If your toddler is not receiving breastmilk, offer 500 mL (2 cups) of whole milk (3.25% M.F.) every day to help meet their nutrient needs. Offer whole milk until your toddler is two years old because fat helps meet their energy needs for their development. You can switch to lower-fat milks once your child is two years old.

If your toddler drinks too much milk, they won’t have enough room for the other foods they need. Limit the amount of milk to no more than 750 mL (three cups) a day.

If your toddler can’t have cow milk for medical, cultural or religious reasons, contact 811 Dial-a-Dietitian to discuss options. Soy, rice, and other plant-based beverages are not a good alternative for whole milk because they don’t have the same amounts of nutrients as whole milk.