Nutritional Snacks for Toddlers

According to Kids Health, "toddlers need about 1,000 to 1,200 calories a day," but because of their activity level, it is often difficult to get them to sit still long enough to eat a significant number of these calories at any one time. Because of this, Kids Health recommends that children be offered two to three healthy snacks per day to meet their nutritional requirements.

Fruits

Sliced apples, pears, strawberries and grapes all make excellent snacks for toddlers. If a child will not eat these raw, try offering a fat-free caramel or yogurt dip on the side.

Vegetables

Once toddlers have their teeth, baby carrots dipped in fat-free ranch dressing or celery sticks spread with peanut butter make nutritious snacks.

Trail mix

Mix mini pretzels, whole grain cereal, raisins and mini chocolate chips to make a fun and nutritious snack that is easy to pack for the road.

Cheese

Cheese is a great snack for toddlers that can be served shredded, cubed or sliced on whole grain crackers.

Cereal

Whole grain and fortified cereals make an easy-to-prepare snack that can be eaten dry or sprinkled on yogurt.

References

• Kids Health