Baby’s Nutrition Guide
OVERVIEW
Before your milk fully comes in, your body makes colostrum, “Liquid Gold”. Just a few drops protect your newborn with powerful antibodies, protein, and nutrients.
It coats and protects the baby’s tummy, helps prevent jaundice, and is perfectly designed for tiny stomachs.
Tip: Feed often, every drop counts!
The First 6 Months
Breast milk or formula provides everything your baby needs.
- Strengthens the immune system and supports brain growth
- Feed on demand when your baby shows hunger cues.
- No water, cereal, or juice; only milk or formula
FOOD
6-12 Months: Introducing Solid Foods
When your baby can sit up and shows interest in food, it’s time to start solids!
- Begin with purees: oatmeal, avocado, sweet potato, banana.
- Introduce one food at a time, waiting a few days before adding another.
- Avoid honey, cow’s milk, added sugar, or salt.
Goal: Offer variety; colorful fruits, veggies, grains, and proteins.
Healthy Fats for Growing Brains
Healthy fats fuel your baby’s brain and body.
- Avocado, Salmon, Egg yolks, Olive oil, Nut butter (thin & smooth)
Tip: Healthy fats help absorb vitamins A, D, E, and K. They also keep baby full.
Choking & Food Allergens Safety
Your baby is learning to chew and swallow- Supervision at all times matters.
- Avoid whole grapes, hot dogs, nuts, popcorn, hard vegetables, or chunks of meat.
- Cut food into very small soft pieces.
- Always sit your baby upright while eating.
DRINKS
Before your milk fully comes in, your body makes colostrum, “Liquid Gold”. Just a few drops protect your newborn with powerful antibodies, protein, and nutrients.
It coats and protects the baby’s tummy, helps prevent jaundice, and is perfectly designed for tiny stomachs.
Tip: Feed often, every drop counts!
The First 6 Months
Breast milk or formula provides everything your baby needs.
- Strengthens the immune system and supports brain growth
- Feed on demand when your baby shows hunger cues.
- No water, cereal, or juice; only milk or formula
Toddler’s Nutrition Guide
OVERVIEW
The toddler years, from 12-36 months are an amazing time. Your little one is learning, growing, and becoming more independent every day. Along with all those first steps & first words, this is also when their brains are developing faster than ever, and foods they eat play a big role in that growth.
During this stage, your child is moving from milk to table foods, learning how to feed themselves, and starting to make their own choices about what to eat. It’s an exciting transition, but it can also be a bit tricky. Some days they’ll eat everything in sight and other days, it might feel like they live on air and applesauce. Don’t worry, that’s normal.
FOOD
Toddlers need small and frequent meals to keep up with their energy and growth.
Aim for:
- 3 meals plus 2-3 snacks each day
- Offer food every 2-3 hours, hey have little tummies, so smaller more frequent portions are best.
- Serve a mix of foods: fruits, veggies, whole grains, proteins, and diary
A good rule of thumb: Start with 1 tablespoon of each food per year of age, then let your child ask for more,
Healthy Eating Habits
At this age, toddlers are learning how to eat, not just what to eat. You can help by setting loving limits and creating positive routines.
Here are some simple ways to build good habits.
- Eat together when you can-kids learn by watching you.
- Set regular mealtimes– It helps them know what to expect.
- Offer choices– “ Do you want carrots or green beans?”, this gives them control but keeps you in charge.
- Avoid bribery or pressure– can make a power struggle
- Stay Calm when they refuse food, just offer it another day.
DRINKS
The most important nutrients for their diet are Iron, Calcium, Vitamin D ,Protein, Healthy fats, and Fiber.
Food Safety Tips
Keep mealtimes safe by remembering
- Cut food into Small, soft pieces to prevent choking.
- Avoid hard or round foods like whole grapes, nuts, popcorn, or hard candy.
- Always have your toddler sit while eating, not walk or play with food in their mouths.
- Make sure foods are fully cooked and stored safely.
- Wash hands and surfaces before preparing or serving food.
Limit or avoid these foods:
- Sugary drinks
- High-salt snacks
- Candy or deserts ( special occasions)
- Honey until past 12 months
Water or milk are the best drinks for toddlers
Children’s Nutrition Guide
OVERVIEW
A child is always learning about the world. If a parent engages a child in healthy habits, the child will grow into them naturally.
Nutrition is more than just what’s on the plate. A child can learn about the whole process of healthy living. Take a child to the grocery store and have them pick out ripe fruits, let them safely help by doing small tasks in the kitchen, like snapping peas and shucking corn, and give full explanations of why healthy eating is important.
As your child grows, they can help and learn more and more.
FOOD
Children need to eat three square meals a day: Breakfast, Lunch, and Dinner. Ideally, these meals should include a wide variety of foods: grains, fruits, veggies, dairy, healthy fats, and proteins.
Explain to a child that each different food helps the body grow in different ways rather than just saying “I told you so.”
If your child struggles with picky eating, try explaining new foods to them before they eat them and offer to try it with them:
“This is cantaloupe! It is cold, soft, very sweet, juicy, and so yummy! It’s a little like the watermelon we tried yesterday. Would you like to try it together?”
This can make a picky child feel safer to try new foods.
A child cannot avoid unhealthy foods forever. It’s okay to eat sweets for a treat. Explain to your child that sweets are for special occasions. Having scheduled treats, like ice cream on Fridays, can help teach moderation.
DRINKS
Children are perfectly safe to drink 100% juice, all kinds of milks, and other beverages.
Teach your child that soda is a special occasion drink for parties and holidays, and it should not be had with every meal. Too much soda is a leading culprit in unhealthy childhood diets.
Children should not drink coffee, as it has caffeine.
It is illegal for a child to consume alcohol in any amount.
Teens Nutrition Guide
OVERVIEW
As a child becomes a teenager, they become more independent. Teens will start to eat their own snacks and make their own meals. Teens will begin to walk around the neighborhood and the school district, and eventually drive around town.
Teenagers have different dietary needs than adults—to help their body change during puberty, they need to eat more calories. This can cause lots of teens to become big eaters. It is normal for teens to eat a lot, but parents can help teens eat a lot of healthy foods, rather than a lot of unhealthy foods..
FOOD
As you help your teen develop financial sense, explain that getting too much takeout and fast food is unhealthy and expensive.
Make sure the snacks and ingredients in the home are healthy, so a teenager will snack on and cook healthier meals for themselves. Try not to stock too many frozen dinners or processed snacks.
Watch for signs of disordered eating in teens, who are under a lot of stress and can develop eating disorders. If a teen under-eats, disappears after eating, starts having issues with dizziness or fatigue, and/or has a negative view of their body, talk to them and their doctor about eating disorders.
DRINKS
Teens may start consuming coffee. If your teen wants to drink coffee, advise them on healthy coffee consumption:
- Try not to drink coffee in the late afternoon.
- Try not to drink too much coffee.
- Try to develop a taste for coffee with milk rather than sugary coffeeshop beverages.
Even though it is a crime to drink alcohol under 21, a teen may start drinking alcohol socially. Advise your teen to abstain from alcohol until it is legal to do so. In the event that a teen does decide to drink, advise them to be safe:
- Having a fake ID to purchase alcohol or get into a bar is a crime.
- If you have a drink, always have it in your hand and keep an eye on it.
- Always stay with friends.
- Never drink and drive.
Do not make your teen so afraid of getting in trouble that they put themselves in a dangerous situation. Tell your teen to always call for help instead of driving drunk.