Healthy Eating for Children by Age Group (From 0 To 18 Years)

Knowing what to feed your child once they’re old enough for solid foods can lead to a whole host of questions. 

You might be asking yourself, what are the best first foods to introduce your child to? Are there specific textures you should avoid or add at certain times? Are there foods you should avoid? Will they get all the nutrients they need?

With the help of our in-house medical reviewer and pediatrician, Dr. Jenny Hughes, M.D., we’ll answer all this and more to help guide healthy eating for children by age group.

0 to 6 Months

According to the World Health Organization (WHO), mothers should try to initiate breastfeeding within one hour of birth and exclusively breastfeed for up to six months.¹

If breastfeeding is not possible, infant formula is also perfectly acceptable and contains all the same nutrients as breast milk.

Moms, support your own nutrition when breastfeeding. It’s advised to eat a little more than usual—between 300 and 400 calories—and to add foods to your diet that are higher in iron, calcium, vitamin D, and lean protein.²

6 to 12 Months

At about six months, start to introduce solid foods to your baby’s diet. You’ll know when they’re ready when they do the following:³

• Sitting up alone or with minimal support with the ability to control their own head and neck
• Opening their mouths when offered food
• Tries to grasp small objects and brings objects to their mouth
• Transfers food from the front to back and swallows rather than pushing it back out

If they appear ready, you can start feeding small amounts of pureed or mashed food.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends getting your baby to try a variety of foods starting around 6 months of age, including everything from infant cereals to meat, fruits, veggies, yogurt, cheese, and more.⁴

Make sure to introduce only one new ingredient at a time to assess your baby’s tolerance. This way, you will be able to identify if they are allergic to a food and the source of the allergy right away.

As for how to prepare food for your baby, make sure to do the following:

• Mix cereals or grains with breast milk, formula, or water to make it smooth and easy to swallow
• Mash or puree veggies and fruits. (Be sure to cook hard fruits or vegetables before mashing to make the process easier and remove all the seeds, pits, and skins)
• Remove all fat, skin, and bones from any meat
• Puree or dice/shred meats into small pieces (If your baby is weaning, follow recommendations for larger, holdable, gummable-sized pieces with close supervision)

Overall, just make sure that everything you feed them at this age is soft enough and small enough to prevent choking.

12 to 24 Months

At around 12 months old, your child can begin eating a much wider variety of solid foods as full meals.

To help parents build nutritious and well-balanced meals, the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) has created a super handy chart called the MyPlate Food Guide (below).⁵

This chart provides a visual explanation of how much of each food group, including fruits, grains, vegetables, protein, and dairy, to give your child.

Here is an example of what a day of eating may look like:

At this age, you still want to make sure you’re cutting up foods relatively small and supervising meal time.

Ages 2 to 4

As your child grows, so will their appetites. The main thing that begins to change as they enter this stage is their calorie intake.

Depending on their activity level and growth rate, your toddler may need somewhere between 1,000 to 1,600 calories. 

As for what to feed them at this age, not much should change. A mix of fruits and vegetables, lean protein, low-fat dairy, and whole grains is a pretty good diet for any age.

Here’s an example of what a day of eating might look like for ages 2 to 4:

Ages 5 to 8

As children reach school age, again, their calorie needs will increase as their physical and mental activity increases; aim for 1,200 to 2,000 calories. 

Now, we know that may sound like a lot, and it likely is for the younger end of this scale. However, don’t underestimate how much energy your child may be using at school and in extracurricular activities! They need the fuel to keep up with their peers.

If you have the time, this age is a great time to involve your child in meal prep activities and allow them to make more independent decisions about what they are eating. (This is also a great way to avoid any picky eating habits that might arise.)

Ages 9 to 13

Many children enter puberty around this age. And with puberty comes a variety of changes, both physical and mental. 

When it comes to what to feed your preteen, focus on maintaining the same variety of foods they have (hopefully) been eating throughout their younger years. However, now you should emphasize higher nutrient density (aka, more calories).

They will likely let you know if they’re hungry since their appetite can increase immensely to accommodate growth spurts and other changes in the body.

It’s not just a cliche that teenagers eat a lot! They may require somewhere between 1,400 to 2,600 calories.

Please keep in mind that this is an estimation. You and your child should work together to determine how much food they actually need to maintain a healthy weight and fuel their activities.

Ages 14 to 18

This age is another period of significant growth, but this time, it’s not just physical or mental but also in terms of independence. 

If you haven’t already, this is an excellent time to teach them how to cook healthy meals before they fly the coop.

Additionally, learning how to manage cravings or changes in appetite due to stress in a healthy way can be instrumental to their success as adults in the real world, especially if they will be going to college.

As for nutrition needs, the same type of balanced diet recommended above still applies, but, as we’ve learned, the calorie needs may increase.

Some adolescents may need no more than 1,800 to 2,000 calories per day to fuel their resting metabolic rate and non-athletic extracurricular activities.

However, if they are athletes (particularly males), they may need significantly more—especially as they approach 16 to 18 years of age. Those fuel rates require up to 3,000 to 3,200 calories per day.

Feeding Tips

Parents, we’re sure you already know (since you’re reading this article) that ensuring your children are getting enough nutrients to grow up healthy and happy is essential.

But there are a few other things we’d like to quickly share as part of this guide to help you and your child develop healthy eating habits, too.

What To Do

• Eat family meals. Encourage regular family meals to model healthy eating behaviors and make mealtimes enjoyable.
• Drink water regularly. Staying hydrated is an often overlooked part of healthy nutrition and eating. Make sure your child always has access to water and encourage them to drink frequently.
• Consistently introduce new healthy foods. Offer new healthy foods regularly alongside familiar favorites to expand your child’s diet.
• Involve children in meal preparation. Get your kids involved in meal prep with age-appropriate tasks in the kitchen to increase their interest in nutritious food and prepare them for adulthood.
• Be mindful of portion sizes. Serve appropriate portions for your child’s age and appetite, and allow them to ask for more if they’re still hungry or to leave food on the plate if they are full.
• Encourage self-feeding. Allow children to feed themselves to foster independence and teach kids how to self-regulate their hunger and fullness.
• Create a positive mealtime environment. Make mealtimes pleasant and stress-free to encourage a healthy relationship with food. Consistently offer praise when your child tries new foods or makes healthy eating choices.
• Be a role model. The best way to get your kids to eat healthy foods is to do it with them! Demonstrate healthy eating habits by eating a variety of nutritious foods yourself.

What Not To Do

• Force children to clean their plates. Avoid pressuring children to finish all the food on their plates, which can lead to overeating and confuse their natural hunger and satiety signals.
• Use food as a reward or punishment. Don’t use food as a bribe for good behavior or withhold food as a punishment. Doing so can create an unhealthy relationship with food.
• Allow excessive snacking. Limit snacking between meals to ensure they are hungry at mealtime. If you do allow snacking, make sure to have healthy snacks on hand.
• Allow distractions at mealtime. To help children focus on eating, avoid letting them watch TV or play with devices during mealtime.
• Cook separate meals for picky eaters. Avoid becoming a short-order cook; offer the same meal to the whole family with slight modifications if needed.
• Make negative comments about food. Foods aren’t “good” or “bad.” Some choices are just healthier than others. By avoiding making negative comments, children won’t feel that unhealthy foods are off-limits, which can have the opposite desired effect, making them want them more.
• Serve sugary drinks regularly. Don’t give your children sugary beverages like soda and juice regularly. These are high in sugar and calorically dense.

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