Nutrition and Meal Planning in the Early Years

The early years of a child’s life really matter when it comes to lifelong health. The habits and preferences they form around food when they’re young set the pattern throughout childhood and for the rest of their lives. Providing children with the tools they need to make good choices and to have a healthy relationship with food starts at a very young age.

How is nutrition implemented at Fennies?

Fennies has been working with the Early Years Alliance Nutrition team for several years. The registered nutritionists provide Fennies with a framework to develop healthy and nutritious menus for the children and to create a positive environment for the children to learn about food and nutrition.

What should my child be eating in the early years?

From birth to around 6 months: Your baby will receive all the energy and nutrition it needs to grow and develop from breast milk, infant formula, or a mixture of both, depending on how you have chosen to feed your baby. At this stage, there is no need to offer any other foods or drinks to your baby.

At around 6 months: Nutritional needs start to change, and it is recommended that solid foods are introduced gradually into a baby’s diet. Weaning  is unique to each child and it is important that parents seek support from their healthcare professional to fully understand the needs of their child.

From around 12 months:  children will be eating similar foods to the rest of the family and at this stage, it is important to aim to follow nutrition and healthy eating guidelines appropriate for their age group.  

What does good nutrition for under 5s look like?

Knowing where to start with good nutrition and how to in still positive feeding habits for our children can feel overwhelming. Within the nursery, we aim to follow a few simple tips that can really help to provide structure when it comes to establishing good habits. These tips are just as relevant at home too!

1. Include a variety of foods from the four main food groups.  

From around 12 months of age, young children need a variety of foods from the four main food groups:-

• Starchy foods – about 5 portions a day
• Fruit and vegetables – 5 or more portions a day
• Dairy foods – about 3 portions a day
• Protein foods – about 2 portions a day (3 portions for vegetarian or vegan children)

The 5532 guide below shows what this variety might look like and offers some suggested portion sizes for each food group.

2. Establish a good mealtime routine

Young children are growing rapidly and need regular opportunities to eat to meet their energy and nutrient requirements. Planning ahead to create a structured meal and snack time routine with 3 main meals and 2 or 3 snacks daily for children from around 12 months of age is a helpful way to offer food regularly.

3. Being a good role model  

Being good role models when it comes to food is important as parents, but also within the nursery setting – children are used to these routines at nursery so why not try them at home too?

Try to:

• Eat together
• Talk about the foods you enjoy
• Avoid making negative comments about foods
• Use other family members and friends as good role models too
• Avoid using food as a punishment or reward for behaviour

4. Expose children to the foods you want them to eat

Not all children will love food enough to try new ingredients or dishes the first time they’re offered. Before children can even contemplate tasting a food, they need to feel comfortable seeing, smelling and touching that food.  

Repeated exposure, as well as role modelling, is a great way to increase children’s familiarity with new foods. There are lots of ways to expose children to new foods outside of mealtimes too and there are plenty of activities to try:

• Growing fruits and vegetables together
• Sensory/messy play
• Cooking/food preparation activities
• Shopping together or shopping basket games
• Story time or looking at pictures of food in magazines
• Singing songs about food

5. Take the pressure off

Children, especially toddlers, crave autonomy and can resist when we try to influence their choices. It can be helpful to remind yourself that it is not your job to ‘make’ your child eat. Instead, your role is to decide what food you offer and when that food is served. It’s your child’s job to decide how much of the food/s offered they want to eat.

When we take this approach with child feeding, it can help to reduce the stress of mealtimes and allow the child to form more positive lifelong associations with food.

How does having a focus on nutrition and the food environment in the nursery benefit my child?

Knowing that Fennies have a long-standing relationship with the Early Years Alliance nutrition team means that there is a focus on a wide variety of aspects across the nursery that will help to provide a well-rounded experience for your child including: a balanced and varied menu, a relaxed, sociable and positive environment to eat in, tailored support for children with dietary needs, and engaging food-related activities like cooking, gardening, and storytelling.

Key Takeaways

1. Good nutrition is vitally important to support children’s healthy growth and development
2. Even before birth, nutrition plays a part in determining lifelong health, and this continues throughout childhood
3. Establishing a good routine with meals and snacks in the early years helps children to form good habits with food and nutrition and helps to develop a positive relationship into childhood and beyond
4. Planning meals to include a variety of foods from the important food groups will support the nutritional needs of your child. Within the nursery, meal planning is based on the principles of good nutrition
5. Having a focus on nutrition and the food environment in the nursery supports our children to develop a lifelong positive relationship with food.

‍