How many servings do 2 year olds eat in a day?

Your little one is already two years old and you are confused about how much to eat? There are types of mothers who are afraid that their children will not get enough food. However, there are also mothers who are afraid of eating too much for their children. So, it is important for you to understand how much toddlers eat at 2 years of age in order to get the right nutrition.

What are the serving and timing rules for 2 year olds?

Toddlers usually like their meal times according to family meal times and their meal times must be regular every day. We recommend that you set the family meal schedule to be 3 main meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner) along with 2 side meals.

For main meals:

This food is given in the morning, afternoon, and evening. For example breakfast at 7 am, lunch at 12, and dinner at 18.30. This eating schedule should be done in a planned and regular manner.

This is because eating habits from a toddler will shape their eating habits into adulthood. In addition, give children meal time at least not more than 30 minutes.

For a snack:

As important as the main meal, snacks are also very important to help meet the energy and nutritional needs needed in a day.

Snack 2 hours before main meal

Give healthy snacks 2 hours before main meal. The reason is if it is too close, it is feared that the child will feel full before the next heavy meal. This is what makes it difficult for 2 year olds to finish the portion that has been prepared.

Don't make snacks as gifts

Have you ever used a snack as a gift? Avoid the habit. Snacks are not gifts or bait to persuade children, but rather a meal schedule that must be met.

Snacks must be nutritionally appropriate

In accordance with a balanced nutritional pattern, snacks needed by toddlers include milk, fruit juices, fresh fruit, and bread. You can also provide other healthy snacks to meet the nutritional needs of children.

The ideal portion for children aged 2 years

At the age of five, the recommended amount of energy needed is different for each child. Starting from 1,125 calories to 1,600 calories. When viewed from the largest calorie needs, here's an example of sharing the portion of meals for children aged 2 years:

Staple food

You can give the children as much as 300 grams of rice a day or about 3-4 scoops of rice (meaning one spoon for every heavy meal).

Not only with rice, you can also replace rice with other sources of carbohydrates as needed. 3-4 centong rice contains 525 calories - the equivalent of 210 grams of bread or 630 grams of potatoes.

From the total staple food for the day, you can split this amount between main and interlude meals.

You can divide it, for example, eating rice at breakfast 80 grams, lunch 100 grams, and 100 grams at night. The afternoon snack can be with a sheet of plain bread with margarine and sprinkled to taste.

Animal protein

The recommended animal protein, especially for children 2 years and over, is 125 grams a day and 200 milliliters of milk a day. This animal side dish can be obtained from fish, beef, chicken, eggs, shrimp, and others.

For example, during breakfast the child eats an egg, then about 2 hours later drinks a cup of milk.

Next, the child will have lunch with a medium-sized piece of meat, dinner with a piece of chicken (about 40 grams), and before going to bed drink a cup of milk.

Vegetable protein

Vegetable protein needed by toddlers is about 100 grams a day. Vegetable protein can be obtained from tempeh, tofu, green beans, and other nuts.

For example, toddlers can be given an animal protein lunch plus a slice of tempeh, an afternoon snack with green bean puree about 1.5 tablespoons (15 grams). After that, children can have dinner plus a large piece of tofu.

Vegetable and fruit

Toddlers need as much as 100 grams of vegetables and 400 grams of fruits and vegetables a day.

You can give vegetables to every heavy meal, from morning, noon, until night. One hundred grams of this vegetable is the equivalent of a bowl full of vegetables that an adult would eat. From a bowl full of vegetables you can divide 3 meals for toddlers.

For example, bowl of spinach for the morning, ½ cup of broccoli for lunch, and ¼ bowl of green beans at night.

For fruit, it takes about 400 grams of papaya (2 large pieces) a day. Apart from papaya, you can replace it with an equivalent such as 2 large pieces of melon, or 2 banana bananas, or 1.5 mangoes a day. You can give this fruit as a snack or after a heavy meal.

As an illustration, here is an example of a 2 year old toddler's meal portion that can be a guide, quoting from the Very Well Family:

1/4 to 1/2 slices of bread
1/4 cup cereal
one to two tablespoons of vegetables
1/2 piece of fresh fruit
1/2 cooked egg
20 grams of meat

If your little one still wants to eat but the food has run out, give a few seconds pause by giving the soup or vegetables on the dining table.

This method is done in order to find out whether the child is really still hungry or not. In addition, this method is also to reduce the risk of nausea due to satiety.

Tips when 2 year olds do not finish eating

There are times when toddlers are very hungry with the snacks that are served, but sometimes they can't finish their portion of food.

This condition often confuses parents, especially mothers, because they are worried that their little one's nutrition is not fulfilled.

To fix this, here are tips when a child who has turned 2 years old does not finish eating:

Reducing expectations

Launching from the Family Doctor, when children don't finish their meal portions, you need to remember that too high expectations can be disappointing and children can feel depressed. Just like adults, children also have a fluctuating appetite.

Reducing portions

When yesterday he did not finish the prepared meal, avoid giving the same amount of food. You can provide a 2 year old child with a small portion of food, but the nutrition is still as needed.

Spend less time watching

Not a few parents provide shows or gadgets when their children are eating. This method can indeed distract your little one.

However, this can also make children not focus on eating. Toddlers aged 2 years can be given directions, you can tell him that he needs to focus on eating portions.

Changing the food menu

At the age of 2 years, toddlers already understand the desired food menu. This is often a problem why he doesn't finish the portion of the meal he is given.

When your child doesn't finish his meal, it may be because he is bored. You can change the menu the next day, but with small portions.

When your child seems to like it, sucks, and finishes it, ask if you'd like to add a menu. If the child looks enthusiastic, it means that the day's menu was successful for the little one.

Give a time limit for snacks

Within a day, children need to eat three times and provide snacks according to the rules, which is twice. Sometimes, giving too many snacks makes children not finish their meal portions.

When is the timesnacking arrive, give your little one healthy snacks such as pieces of fruit, white bread, or cheese. Avoid giving snacks near dinner time because it can make children full quickly.

Give pause one or two hours after the snack so that the stomach is ready again to be filled by a heavy meal menu.