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Sample Daily Menu For A 1 Year Old Child
This menu provides general guidelines for feeding a 1 year old. The amount a child eats will vary depending on how hungry he is. The serving sizes below are meant to provide guidelines for the portion size of foods appropriate for a child of this age. When preparing lunch, put a little bit aside as a baby appetizer for dinner. If dinner is running late and he's hungry, you can stall while he stays content in his high chair. Any easy to prepare healthy finger foods can serve as appetizers. Try chopped olives (rinse to lower salt content), avocado or petite baby peas (frozen). Some other ideas for healthy finger foods include cheerios, low fat string cheese, shredded oats, 1/2 of a hard boiled egg etc.
General guidelines for feeding a 1 year old:
- Babies and toddlers are very good at listening to their hunger cues, so leave it up to them to decide how much to eat.
- Remember not to give him liquids; i.e. milk or fruit juices just before meal times. If you are breast feeding, whole milk will not need to be offered as frequently. Serve no more than 24 ounces of milk per day by one year of age. This will promote an increase in the amount of food your baby eats. Too much milk and too little food may lead to iron-deficiency anemia.
- Babies are reluctant to try new foods, so you might have to introduce a new food multiple times before he will accept it.
- Lastly, model good eating behavior. This is the best way to create good eating habits for life.
*Speak to your healthcare professional for individualized recommendations.
Breakfast: 1 - 2 tbsp blackberry applesauce; 1/4 cup Cheerios or toasted O's cereal; 1/2 cup whole milk yogurt
Snack: 1/2 ounce cheddar cheese; 4 wheat crackers (no trans fats); 1/2 cup whole milk or breast milk
Lunch: 1 ounce roasted chicken minced; 1 tbsp of brown rice and 1-2 tbsp of black beans with minced tomatoes and 1/2 tsp olive oil; 1 to 2 tbsp cooked yellow peppers; 1/2 cup whole milk or breast milk; 1/2 banana
Snack: 1/2 slice whole wheat toast with 1 tsp of non-hydrogenated margarine; 4 ounces of frozen mango chunks defrosted; 1/2 cup whole Keifer milk
Dinner: 1 Tbsp serving of olives; rinse well & chop; 1 1/2 ounce chicken thigh minced; 1 to 2 tbsp mashed sweet potato mixed with 1 tbsp of sour cream or whole milk yogurt or mashed avocado; 1 to 2 tbsp of chopped green beans; 1/2 cup whole milk or breast milk
Melissa Halas-Liang, MA, RD, CDE, CNSD is a Registered Dietitian and Certified Diabetes Educator with a Masters in Nutrition Education. She is founder of SuperKids Nutrition Inc. where she is "saving the world, one healthy food at a time." Read more about her children's books and her experience as a Registered Dietitian on the Our Experts page.
Jigna Merchant, BS, MS is a Nutrition Scientist for Mead Johnson Nutritionals in Evansville, Indiana.
