Nutrition for 2-4 Year Olds

Physiological Development

In the third and fourth year, children will on average grow another 5 inches and gain around another 10 lbs. This is slower than the second year and much slower than the first.

Slower growth can also mean a drop in appetite, while your toddler is also likely pickier, and often more distracted than before. Put this all together and it means toddlers’ appetites can be a lot more volatile than you would hope. Fortunately, this is a temporary period that they’ll grow out of.

Meanwhile, by this point (and sometimes much earlier), your child will be comfortable using a spoon and fork and drinking from an open cup (never mind the odd spill here and there).

At this age, eating has become secondary to social, language and cognitive growth. However, the huge leap in language especially opens up a world of opportunity for you, both to talk about the food you eat and why as well as to use mealtimes as an opportunity to communicate.

Energy and Nutrient Requirements

By 2 years of age, your child will have more or less established regular eating habits and shown a preference for certain foods over others.

Energy requirements continue to grow compared to those of 1 year olds. Macronutrient distribution stays roughly the same, just in higher quantities. Micronutrient requirements are also slightly higher but as long as your child is getting a balanced diet which includes all food groups, micronutrient deficiencies will be very rare.

Food Group	Daily Servings
Fruits	1 cup
Vegetables	1 cup
Grains	3 oz
Protein foods	2 oz
Dairy	2 cups
Fats and oils	3 tsp

General Guidelines

You probably feel like your child is very grown-up by now – they can likely tell you when they are hungry and if they like something or not which is a huge development vs. one year ago. But their stomach is still small and appetite irregular.

For this reason, small regular meals (or meals + snacks) about 4-6 times a day is still so important to keep them well-fed and happy.

Healthy Eating Practices

Include at last one leafy green vegetable or yellow vegetable with lunch and dinner
Include at least one vitamin C-rich food in one of the daily snacks
Choose whole-grains over white alternatives
Avoid fruit juices which can be high in sugar
Avoid making a habit of serving cakes, cookies, hotdogs, pizza, burgers etc

Simple, healthy snack choices:

Sliced fruit or vegetables
Fruit or vegetable smoothies
Homemade fruit or vegetable bars
Hummus or bean dips with whole-grain crackers
Nut butter on whole-grain crackers
Milk or yogurt

Mealtime Best Practices

Every child is unique, so it’s up to you to know what your child likes and dislikes and when they are more likely to eat. While forcing them to eat will affect your child’s sense of self-moderation, you can still organize mealtimes in a way that encourages them to eat.

This might mean adjusting your routine if your child is regularly refusing food at lunchtime for example, but hungry an hour later. A few other things you can do to help include:

Make sure your child is well-rested – tired children don’t tend to eat well
Make them comfortable – check your child’s feet are supported to minimize fidgeting, with the tray or table at chest height and food comfortably within reach
Presentation matters – whether it means separating different kinds of foods, arranging them in a smiley face, or taking out the broken crackers
Offer choices – let your child choose between different healthy foods before you prepare them, or better yet, let them help you prepare their own food