Provide Healthy Choices

It's not unusual for a 3-year-old to skip meals or avoid certain foods. The key to helping a finicky child get the protein and calories she needs is to give her healthy choices at mealtime.

By the editors of Child magazine

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Introduction

Fortunately, studies show that in spite of binges, meal strikes, food obsessions, and other strange kinds of behavior, most preschoolers consume more than enough calories and protein to meet their needs. If they take in too few calories at one meal, they will very likely make up for it at another, even when left entirely to their own devices. If your child seems to be growing and thriving despite an apparent decline in appetite, there is usually little reason for you to be worried.

Of course, you can't leave eating entirely up to your child. In a 1990s study, a group of children ages 4 to 7 were asked to choose what they would like to eat from a range of foods. The not-so-surprising conclusion: Fifty percent of these kids opted for junk food. Since most children will choose cookies over carrots if given the choice, let your preschooler pick between carrots and cauliflower instead.

Continued on page 2: Nutrition Guidelines

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