Introduce vegetables and fruits
Children need vegetables and fruits daily for healthy growth and brain development. Early eating experiences can also affect how we eat as we get older. This is why it’s so important to introduce young children to healthy foods, including a variety of vegetables and fruits.
To help children grow strong, include vegetables and fruits with their meals and snacks. Fresh, frozen, or canned options are all OK. With canned vegetables, look for products with low sodium. With canned or frozen fruits, choose ones with no added sugars.
Prepare and store vegetables and fruits in single-serving containers. Then you’ll have a healthy snack ready when children are hungry.
How many vegetables and fruits children need depends on their age and how active they are. Use this information as a general guideline.
Daily consumption recommendations by age
For more information
Serve a rainbow of color
Include a variety of vegetables and fruits to make a rainbow of different colored foods on your child’s plate in small, bite-sized pieces. Be sure to also include other nutrient-dense foods in addition to vegetables and fruits. Examples include:
- Vegetables: cooked spinach, carrots, peas, sweet potatoes, or beets.
- Fruits: bananas, strawberries, pears, oranges, melons, or avocados.
- Protein foods: beef, lamb, chicken, deboned fish, or turkey (soft, small pieces for children 6 to 12 months); beans, peas, and lentils; nuts, seeds, and soy products.
- Dairy with no added sugars: pasteurized yogurts or cheeses (or lactose-free versions and fortified dairy alternatives).
- Whole grains: whole grain breads, crackers, or pastas.
Try these playful activity cards to keep your picky eater engaged and open to new tastes and textures.
Introduce first foods
When children are about 6 months old, you can start introducing them to foods and drinks other than breast milk and infant formula. These are sometimes called complementary foods. Think of these as “complementing,” or adding to, breast milk or infant formula that you continue to feed your child. For most children, you don’t need to introduce foods in a specific order.
By the time children are 7 or 8 months old, they can eat a variety of foods from different food groups. Your child needs a variety of vitamins and minerals to grow healthy and strong.
Avoid giving certain foods and drinks to children younger than 12 months.
Encourage new foods
As your child gets older, it’s important to introduce them to a variety of foods. Between your child’s first and second year, they will develop the skills needed to participate in family meals. By 2 years old, your child will be able to eat most of the same foods as everyone in the family.
At this time, they may start refusing foods they previously liked or may start showing signs of picky eating. Favoring just a couple of foods or not wanting foods to touch each other on the plate are normal behaviors. These behaviors often go away by the time the child is about 5 years old.
Children may need to try some foods many times.
Children may not like every food you give them on the first try. Give them a chance to try foods again and again, even if they don’t like them at first. Children may need to try some foods many times before they like them
For tips on how to get your child to try new foods, see Tips to Help Your Picky Eater.
Consider drinks too!
When your child is 6 to 12 months old, you can offer:
- Water (4 to 6 ounces per day).
- Breast milk (if you are still breastfeeding) or infant formula.
Breast milk or infant formula will continue to be your child’s main source of nutrition up to 12 months of age. Once your child is 12 months old, you can begin offering pasteurized, whole cow’s milk, lactose-free and lactose-reduced products, and fortified dairy alternatives. These drinks are good sources of vitamin D and calcium for children 12 months and older.
If you want to serve your children fruit juice, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends waiting until they are 1 year old. For children 1 through 3 years old, AAP recommends no more than 4 ounces of 100% fruit juice a day.
No added sugars
Children younger than 11 years should not have any added sugars in their diet. Check the Nutrition Facts Label to find foods with no added sugars.
Beverages with no added sugars are the best choice. These include water and unsweetened milk. Low-lactose or lactose-free milk and unsweetened, fortified dairy alternatives are also healthy choices.
Be their role model
Once children are 12 months or older, they will eat more of the foods that you eat. Healthy eating patterns set a good example for your children. Healthy eating patterns focus on vegetables, fruits, protein, dairy, healthy fats, and whole grains. It’s also important to limit foods that are high in sodium and added sugars.
Water and unsweetened beverages are the best choice for adolescents and adults too. See how to Rethink Your Drink. Also, the Dietary Guidelines for Americans can help you choose healthy foods and drinks for your family.
