Bledidoc Answers
Is providing regular meals and snacks essential for your toddler?

The National Health Service and other organizations tend to recommend offering snacks to young children between 3-5 years of age.1

If the right snacks are offered at the right times, they can play an important role in managing kids' hunger and boosting nutrition.2

 

At this age, kids may need to eat five or six times a day — three meals and two to three snacks.2

 

Healthy options include:

  1. Fruit salad
  2. Yogurt
  3. Sliced or chopped veggies
  4. Whole-grain crackers topped with cheese
  5. Fruit smoothies

 

On the other hand, establishing eating routines is crucial. Children who eat regular meals tend to have better diets and be closer to a healthy weight than those who "graze" throughout the day. Family meals are an important time to share and discuss the day's events. They also teach children what balanced meals look like.3

 

Dr. Chawki Hammoud

Pediatrician, neonatologist

 

1 Snacks for Toddlers and Young Children
 https://www.srnutrition.co.uk/2019/10/snacks-for-toddlers-and-young-children
2 https://kidshealth.org/en/parents/snacking.html
3 https://www.uofmhealth.org/health-library/tn9312



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