More than half of Irish parents have abandoned a planned meal because of a toddler’s tantrum or refusal to eat.
New research indicates that 67 per cent of parents have experienced fussy eating with their child, while 75 per cent are concerned about their toddler’s nutrition.
First time parents to toddler Mícheál Óg, TV presenter Dáithí Ó Sé and Rita Talty Ó Sé joined nutritionist Sarah Keogh this week to launch Cow & Gate’s Toddlebox, a dedicated feeding and nutrition website.
The key advice? “Fussy eating is a normal and common phenomenon with toddlers,” says Sarah. “so if you experience it don’t panic.”
Here are some facts about toddler nutrition:
- Toddlers although tiny, require almost four times more iron than an adult per kg body weight per day, yet one in four Irish toddlers aged one year are not getting the right amount of iron in their diet, which is a key nutrient in supporting brain development.
- It’s incredible to think that by the time a toddler reaches three years; their brain has grown to around 80% of its full size.
- Toddlers need five times more calcium and five times more Vitamin D per kilogram of their bodyweight per day.
- Toddlers’ little tummies are only the size of their own closed fist, making it sometimes difficult for parents to get the right foods in.
