Kids Food Guide Pyramid

Kids Food Guide Pyramid - A daily-guide for 2 to 6 years old

To ensure good nutrition in your child and that they grow up healthy, they will need to eat a large variety of foods. The amount of foods that they eat is much less important. As long as they are gaining weight and have a normal activity level, then you have little to worry about. Offer them a variety of foods, decrease the serving sizes if they don't eat a lot.

What counts as 1 serving?

Grain group servings include 1 slice of bread, 1/2 cup of cooked rice or pasta, 1/2 cup of cooked cereal, and 1 ounce of ready to eat cereal. Your child should eat 6 servings from this group.
Vegetable group servings include 1/2 cup of chopped or raw vegetables, or 1 cup of raw leafy vegetables. Your child should eat 3 servings from this group.

Fruit group servings include 1 piece of fruit or melon wedge, 3/4 cup of 100% fruit juice, 1/2 cup of canned fruit, or 1/4 cup of dried fruit. Your child should eat 2 servings from this group.

Milk group servings include 1 cup of milk or yogurt or 2 ounces of cheese. Your child should eat 2 servings from this group.

Meat group servings include 2 to 3 ounces of cooked lean meat, poultry or fish, 1/2 cup of cooked dry beans. You can substitute 2 tablespoons of peanut butter or 1 egg for 1 ounce of meat. Your child should eat 2 servings from this group.

Fats, Oils and Sweets - No more than 30% of the diet should come from fats. For a 1600 calorie diet, that would equal 53g of fat each day, with most preschool children requiring even less. The type of fat that you eat is also important. Saturated fats raise cholesterol more than unsaturated fats or polyunsaturated fats. Limit saturated fats to no more than 10% of daily calories.

Selection tips:

• use lean meats and skim or lowfat dairy products
• use unsaturated vegetable oils and margarines that list a liquid vegetable oil as the first ingredient on the label
• read the nutrition label on foods to check for the amount and type of fat it includes
• limit foods that contain a large amount of saturated fats
• limit foods high in sugar and avoid adding extra sugar to your foods

​