Food & Eating

Toddlers and young children have different nutritional needs from adults. They are constantly on the move and still growing rapidly so they need a diet high in energy, vitamins and minerals to sustain them. However, it is important to provide the right balance of foods to promote healthy growth.

Our ideas about food are the result of all our experiences with it: what we know, what we believe and what we like to eat. Parents have a big influence on the foods that children enjoy. Developing healthy and happy relationships with food at an early stage will have a big influence on a child’s relationship with food as an adult.

One of the best ways to help your child eat healthily is to eat well yourself, so this might be the time for you to also think about making changes to what and how you eat. For information on healthy eating for adults click here.

Best Start Foods – is your family eligible?

Best Start Foods is a new payment card which helps eligible families receive extra money to buy certain foods. You can use the card to buy any of the healthy foods listed below:

fresh eggs
milk – plain cow’s milk and first infant formula
fruit/vegetables – fresh, frozen or tinned (those with added salt and sugar are excluded)
pulses (e.g. peas, lentils and beans) – dried, fresh, frozen or tinned.

Families will get £17.00 every four weeks during pregnancy. This increases to £34.00 up until your child turns one. It will then return to £17.00 every four weeks between one and three years old. Don’t miss out – for further information on how to apply view the Best Start Foods information.

What is a child sized portion?

Parents often ask just how much a child-sized portion is and to help, we have added an image as a useful guide. Click here to view.

Remember that a child’s tummy is small, so portions should also be small. Using their hand as a guide will help assess portion size for each individual child.