Feeding your preschooler

Help Make Your Child a Healthy Eater

Meal times with your child should be a pleasant time without struggling to get your child to eat their food. Children are very aware of their hunger signals and will eat when they are hungry and stop when they are satisfied.

The amount that your child will eat will vary on a daily basis. Don't worry - your child is able to determine what they need. Both you and your child share the responsibility when it comes to eating.

You decide:

When to eat - meals and snacks should be offered around the same time every day and between 2-3 hours apart
Where to eat - at a table with an adult
What to eat - a variety of foods from Canada's Food Guide

Your child decides:

Whether to eat
How much to eat

Tips for Parents and Caregivers

Have regular meal and snack times
Do not let your child have food or beverages (except for water) between meals and snack times
Make eating times pleasant
Never use food as a reward or a punishment
Never pressure your child to eat, or to 'clean their plate'
Model how children should behave at the table

What to Feed Your Child

By twelve months of age, your child should be eating a wide variety of foods from Canada's Food Guide. This will help your child get used to different tastes and textures and make sure they get the nutrition they need.

When feeding your child, remember to:

Offer your child foods from each of the three food groupings in Canada's Food Guide every day
Serve small portions of food and offer more if your child is still hungry
Gradually introduce a variety of foods with different tastes, textures and colours
Offer at least one dark green and one orange vegetable each day
Don't limit fat in your toddler's diet - it provides energy and essential fatty acids needed for growth. After two years of age, you may switch to lower fat milk
Serve whole grain products to provide fibre and to start a good lifelong habit

Picky Eating

Feeding children can be tricky especially when they are picky. Learning how to cope with these eating behaviours will help reduce meal time struggles.

Image of a young girl sitting at dining table, uninterested in her broccoli and milk

Say Goodbye to Picky Eating

Use these tips to make sure your child gets the nutrition they need.

Get Tips

NutriSTEP® Screening Local Results

NutriSTEP® is a valid and reliable nutrition risk screening questionnaire for preschoolers. In 2020-21, 218 local parents and caregivers filled it out through kindergarten registration processes or in community settings.

Our NutriSTEP® data from 2020-21 shows that many local preschoolers:

Are not eating enough fruit, vegetables, milk and alternatives, and meat and alternatives
Are not deciding for themselves how much to eat
Get too much screen time

Infographic detailing NutriStep survey findings regarding preschooler nutrition

Nutrition - Slide 1 of 5

Infographic detailing NutriStep survey findings regarding preschooler eating habits

Nutrition - Slide 2 of 5

Image of child eating with fork and knife, next to a bowl of granny smith apples. Text: Tips for parents and caregivers: Serve regular sit-down meals and snacks; provide only water between meal and snack times; trust children to eat the amount of food they need

Nutrition - Slide 3 of 5

Image of child eating with fork and knife, next to a bowl of granny smith apples. Text: Tips for parents and caregivers: Don’t put pressure by asking children to eat foods in a specific order or amount; continue to expose children to new foods and try not to become discouraged if they don’t try them at first

Nutrition - Slide 4 of 5

Image of three children eating lunch together. Text: Tips for educators: Remain neutral about the order, amounts, and types of food a child is eating.

Nutrition - Slide 5 of 5

Infographic detailing NutriStep survey findings about screen time among preschoolers

Screen Time - Slide 1 of 5

Bar graph showing how many preschoolers were getting 2, 3, 4 or 5-plus hours of screen time per day in 2020-2021

Screen Time - Slide 2 of 5

Image of children digging into costume box and wearing costume pieces. Text: Tips for Educators: Provide and encourage screen-free break and meal times so students can socialize

Screen Time - Slide 3 of 5

Image of a young child outside in snowy setting, wearing winter jacket, toque and colourful gloves. Text: Tips for parents and caregivers: set time limits for device use (no more than 1 hour— less is better) ; establish screen-free times and places (e.g., bedtime, kitchen table)

Screen Time - Slide 4 of 5

Image of a young child outside in snowy setting, wearing winter jacket, toque and colourful gloves. Text: Tips for parents and caregivers: Role model screen breaks; avoid screens for at least 1 hour before bed; swap screen time for other activities (e.g., reading together, outdoor play)

Screen Time - Slide 5 of 5

More Information

Canada's Food Guide: Healthy eating for parents and children
To speak with a Public Health Nurse, please call the Family Health Information Line at 705-474-1400 ext. 5351 or email healthy.families@healthunit.ca.
Dial 811 to call Health Connect Ontario and to speak directly to a registered dietitian about nutrition and healthy eating. This service is available 24/7 (previously Telehealth).