Nutrition for kids: Guidelines for a healthy diet
You want your child to eat healthy foods, but do you know which nutrients are needed and in what amounts? Here's a quick overview.
Introduction
Nutrition for kids is based on the same ideas as nutrition for adults. Everyone needs the same types of things, such as vitamins, minerals, carbohydrates, protein and fat. These are called nutrients. Children need different amounts of specific nutrients at different ages.
The best eating pattern for a child's growth and development considers the child's age, activity level and other characteristics. Check out these nutrition basics for kids, based on the latest Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
Food packed with nutrients — with no or limited sugar, saturated fat, or salt added to it — is considered nutrient dense. Focusing on nutrient-dense foods helps kids get the nutrients they need while limiting overall calories.
Consider these nutrient-dense foods:
- Protein. Choose seafood, lean meat and poultry, eggs, beans, peas, soy products, and unsalted nuts and seeds.
- Fruits. Encourage your child to eat a variety of fresh, canned, frozen or dried fruits. Look for canned fruit that says it's light or packed in its own juice. This means it's low in added sugar. Keep in mind that 1/4 cup of dried fruit counts as one serving of fruit.
- Vegetables. Serve a variety of fresh, canned, frozen or dried vegetables. Choose peas or beans, along with colorful vegetables each week. When selecting canned or frozen vegetables, look for ones that are lower in sodium.
- Grains. Choose whole grains, such as whole-wheat bread or pasta, oatmeal, popcorn, quinoa, or brown or wild rice.
- Dairy. Encourage your child to eat and drink fat-free or low-fat dairy products, such as milk, yogurt and cheese. Fortified soy beverages also count as dairy.
Aim to limit your child's calories from:
- Added sugar. Naturally occurring sugars, such as those in fruit and milk, aren't added sugars. Examples of added sugars include brown sugar, corn sweetener, corn syrup and honey. To avoid added sugar, check nutrition labels. Choose cereals with minimal added sugars. Avoid sodas and other drinks with added sugars. Limit juice servings. If your child drinks juice, make sure it's 100% juice without added sugars.
- Saturated fats. Saturated fats mainly come from animal sources of food, such as red meat, hot dogs, poultry, butter and other full-fat dairy products. Pizza, sandwiches, burgers and burritos are a common source of saturated fat. Desserts such as cakes and ice cream are another common source of saturated fat. When cooking, look for ways to replace saturated fats with vegetable and nut oils, which provide essential fatty acids and vitamin E.
- Salt. Most children in the United States have too much salt in their daily diets. Another name for salt is sodium. Salt can hide in sandwiches, where the sodium in bread, meat, condiments and toppings adds up. Processed foods, such as pizza, pasta dishes and soup, often have high amounts of salt. Encourage snacking on fruits and vegetables instead of chips and cookies. Check nutrition labels and look for products low in sodium.
If you have questions about nutrition for kids or specific concerns about your child's diet, talk to your child's health care provider or a registered dietitian.
| Calories | 1,000 to 1,400, depending on growth and activity level |
| Protein | 2 to 4 ounces |
| Fruits | 1 to 1.5 cups |
| Vegetables | 1 to 1.5 cups |
| Grains | 3 to 5 ounces |
| Dairy | 2 to 2.5 cups |
| Calories | 1,000 to 1,600, depending on growth and activity level |
| Protein | 2 to 5 ounces |
| Fruits | 1 to 1.5 cups |
| Vegetables | 1 to 2 cups |
| Grains | 3 to 5 ounces |
| Dairy | 2 to 2.5 cups |
| Calories | 1,200 to 1,800, depending on growth and activity level |
| Protein | 3 to 5 ounces |
| Fruits | 1 to 1.5 cups |
| Vegetables | 1.5 to 2.5 cups |
| Grains | 4 to 6 ounces |
| Dairy | 2.5 cups |
| Calories | 1,200 to 2,000, depending on growth and activity level |
| Protein | 3 to 5.5 ounces |
| Fruits | 1 to 2 cups |
| Vegetables | 1.5 to 2.5 cups |
| Grains | 4 to 6 ounces |
| Dairy | 2.5 cups |
| Calories | 1,400 to 2,200, depending on growth and activity level |
| Protein | 4 to 6 ounces |
| Fruits | 1.5 to 2 cups |
| Vegetables | 1.5 to 3 cups |
| Grains | 5 to 7 ounces |
| Dairy | 3 cups |
| Calories | 1,600 to 2,600, depending on growth and activity level |
| Protein | 5 to 6.5 ounces |
| Fruits | 1.5 to 2 cups |
| Vegetables | 2 to 3.5 cups |
| Grains | 5 to 9 ounces |
| Dairy | 3 cups |
| Calories | 1,800 to 2,400, depending on growth and activity level |
| Protein | 5 to 6.5 ounces |
| Fruits | 1.5 to 2 cups |
| Vegetables | 2.5 to 3 cups |
| Grains | 6 to 8 ounces |
| Dairy | 3 cups |
| Calories | 2,000 to 3,200, depending on growth and activity level |
| Protein | 5.5 to 7 ounces |
| Fruits | 2 to 2.5 cups |
| Vegetables | 2.5 to 4 cups |
| Grains | 6 to 10 ounces |
| Dairy | 3 cups |
Children’s health information and parenting tips to your inbox.
Sign-up to get Mayo Clinic’s trusted health content sent to your email. Receive a bonus guide on ways to manage your child’s health just for subscribing. Click here for an email preview.
To provide you with the most relevant and helpful information, and understand which information is beneficial, we may combine your email and website usage information with other information we have about you. If you are a Mayo Clinic patient, this could include protected health information. If we combine this information with your protected health information, we will treat all of that information as protected health information and will only use or disclose that information as set forth in our notice of privacy practices. You may opt-out of email communications at any time by clicking on the unsubscribe link in the e-mail.
Sept. 30, 2022
- 2020-2025 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture. https://www.dietaryguidelines.gov. Accessed July 27, 2022.
See more In-depth
Products and Services
- A Book: Mayo Clinic Family Health Book
- Children’s Book: My Life Beyond Autism
- Newsletter: Mayo Clinic Health Letter — Digital Edition
- A Book: A Practical Guide to Help Kids of All Ages Thrive
See also
- Acetaminophen and children: Why dose matters
- Bullying Scars
- Car sickness in children
- Cast care
- Predicting a child's adult height
- Children and gender identity
- Cold medicines for kids
- Herd immunity and respiratory illness
- COVID-19 in babies and children
- COVID-19 vaccines for kids: What you need to know
- Enterovirus D68 and parechovirus: How can I protect my child?
- Flu shots for kids
- Hand-washing tips
- Iron deficiency in children
- Learning disorders: Know the signs, how to help
- BMI and waist circumference calculator
- Mayo Clinic Minute: Why and when children should be vaccinated
- Mayo Clinic Minute: Why getting vaccinated for the flu is doubly important this season
- Measles vaccine: Can I get the measles if I've already been vaccinated?
- Mental illness in children: Know the signs
- Safe outdoor activities during the COVID-19 pandemic
- Safety tips for attending school during COVID-19
- Limiting screen time
- Thermometer basics
- Thermometers: Understand the options
- Vaccine guidance from Mayo Clinic
- When to Take Your Child to the E.D.
- Mayo Clinic Minute: Out of shape kids and diabetes
.
