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Farm Kitchen:  How much do toddlers eat??  |
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catscharm74
True Blue Farmgirl
4687 Posts
Heather
Texas
USA
4687 Posts |
 Posted - Apr 06 2007 : 12:48:02 PM
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My DS just turned 1 years old 2 weeks ago. His food intake has really dropped. Today, for instance, he has had some oatmeal, 1 strawberry cut up, banana, cheerios as a snack, lunch was a whole pear cut up and 1 chicken nugget, more cheerios as a snack. He has milk with both meals- about 1-2 ounces. That is all he seems to want because he start throwing his food on the floor or playing with it and won't take another bite. I am a first time Mom but know they don't each much, I would just like to get a gauge from ya'll. He is VERY active and happy, so I am not too worried about it and since he eats his veggies and fruits, I am happy. Thanks.
Cheers,
Heather |
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MulberryMama
Farmgirl in Training
37 Posts
Jill
Prospect Heights
IL
USA
37 Posts |
Posted - Apr 06 2007 : 1:23:50 PM
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I had the same questions myself with my daughters. But have found that toddlers eat when they are hungry, and many times that doesn't coincide with mealtime. I found the following information on the web to be helpful, and I feel if I can keep their diet varied, I'm not that concerned if they eat well at a particular meal.
According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture toddlers need foods from the same for basic food groups as adults do, but the serving sizes should be two-thirds of the adult serving size. According to the Ohio State Agricultural Extension, a good rule for serving sizes for toddlers is 1 tablespoon per year of age or 1/4 of an adult serving per year of age. For example, a serving of milk for a 2-year-old would be 1/2 cup, a serving of cooked carrots for a 3-year-old would be 3 tablespoons, a serving of ground beef for tacos for a 4-year-old would be 4 tablespoons. Your toddler should eat indicated servings from these food groups every day:
Meat, fish, poultry, eggs (two to three servings)
Dairy products (three servings equivalent to two cups of milk each day)
Fruits and vegetables (three servings each)
Cereal grains, potatoes, rice, breads, pasta (six servings)
Limit your child's intake of refined sugar. It can contribute to obesity, tooth decay, and overactivity. However, don't restrict cholesterol and fat in children this age as both are needed for normal development says the AAP.
Hope this helps.
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cmandle
True Blue Farmgirl
846 Posts
Catherine
Minneapolis
MN
846 Posts |
Posted - Apr 06 2007 : 1:28:59 PM
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Heather,
This sounds very normal. My 14-month old has been going through the same ups and downs with food and some days it's a battle to try to get "the right stuff" into him. I've heard from so many of my mommy friends that the thing to focus on is just making one meal out of the day a good one as far as nutrients are concerned. And remember, one slice of bread is packed with nutrients for a kid that small, so servings are vastly different.
At least yours is eating fruits and veggies. Mine was on a boycott of all fruits and veggies for a few weeks and I swear I was going to pull my hair out (I'm a vegetarian who loves her fruits and veggies!!). But as his teething has ebbed and flowed, so have his eating habits. He ate a 1/4 of a pear and a whole cantaloupe slice for lunch yesterday along with three pieces of cheese, 5 ounces of whole milk, a handful of whole grain crackers, some Veggie Booty and my flatbread pizza crusts. I was floored!
"Grazing" is okay too. Our pediatrician always recommends three square meals a day but 2-3 snacks too.
Hope this helps!
Catherine, Farmgirl Momma goin' through the same thing
My Blog: http://yogurtandgranola.blogspot.com
My Etsy Shop: http://yogurtandgranola.etsy.com |
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vintagechica
True Blue Farmgirl
438 Posts
Eren
Poolville
TX
USA
438 Posts |
Posted - Apr 06 2007 : 1:47:44 PM
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I had some great advice from our wonderful pediatrician who said to look at a toddler's diet on a weekly basis...like how many fruits, veggies, breads, etc. have they had the entire week. Toddlers can go through phases where they will only eat one thing on a given day. So as long as you get the good stuff in sometime during the week, you're doing good. She also told me that toddlers can be perfectly healthy on breastmilk alone until they are two. So, that made me feel a little better too.
Today Wyatt (23. mo.) has had a banana, a handfull of goldfish, some carrots and a spoonfull of peanut butter. Go figure.
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
A sure way to avoid housework...live outdoors.
Visit me anytime at my blog:
www.vintagechica.typepad.com |
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catscharm74
True Blue Farmgirl
4687 Posts
Heather
Texas
USA
4687 Posts |
Posted - Apr 06 2007 : 2:53:40 PM
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I knew I could count on you farmgirls...and yes he does graze. He usually wants what I am eating so my eating has cleaned up alot. He will take a bite of a cereal bar or a piece of pasta or two. He drinks alot of water too...he loves it more than juice (which I water down). He doesn't like meat too much and we have tried so mostly fruits, vegetables, yogurt (he loves it!!!), some cheddar cheese, he likes cheerios too...I like the taste of the organic one's so much better and they cost less...go figure!!!
I figure if I just keeping giving him the good stuff, he won't get addicted to the bad stuff. I don't want to do the typical chicken nugget, mac and cheese, "pink" milk and hotdog diet most toddlers seem to have these days....I would rather him want 4 pieces of fruit or a plateful of steam vegetables than a hotdog...DH is another story.....still working on his diet...ick!!!
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Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
Posted - Apr 06 2007 : 3:29:06 PM
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Catscharm- Keep up the good work with what you feed him! I think you are doing great to not feed him the bad stuff. Here's why-My sister who is a CNA told me a fact that she learned- It takes 2 weeks to change a child's "tastes". She now runs a day care out of her home, and was horrified when several new toddlers started who refused to eat veggies and only wanted the "main meal" that had meat and carbs in it. So my sister gave these toddlers fruits and veggies and told them they had to at least eat a bit before they could have the other portion of the meal. Bit by bit the kids started eating more fruits and veggies and now they are requesting fruits and veggies from their parents when they are at home! Luckily it was easy to switch these kids to eating healhty- but that also means it is equally easy to switch them to bad eating tastes!
It sounds like he is getting a lot of great nutrition. I hope I do as well when my baby starts to eat solids!
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Farm Kitchen: How much do toddlers eat?? |
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How much do toddlers eat??
