So what’s a portion size? And how many do growing kids need?
The new Canada’s Food Guide provides healthy eating guidelines for children ages 2 and up.
The serving sizes listed in the food guide are the same size as adult serving sizes. Keep in mind, children have small appetites, so spread food servings throughout the day.
For example: 1 serving of milk and alternatives:
½ a cup of milk at breakfast with cereal + ½ cup of milk with dinner
Children eat half of their meals at daycare, so the daycare should provide half of the suggested serving sizes per day.
Here is a list of the food guide servings:
| Serving Sizes | ||||
| Fruits and Vegetables | Grain Products | Milk and Milk Products | Meat and Alternatives | |
| Daily Requirement | 4-5 | 3-4 | 2 | 1 |
| At Daycare | 2-3 | 2 | 1-1 1/2 | 1/2 |
Children have high energy and calorie needs for growth and development, so don’t worry about fat content. It is not necessary to give kids products that are marketed as “low fat” or “low calorie”. Instead focus on healthy and nutritious foods from the food guide.
Putting it all together counting daily serving sizes:
| Morning Snack | ||
| 3/4 cup | Yogurt | 1 serving of Milk and Alternatives |
| 1/2 cup | Strawberries | 1 serving of Vegetables and Fruit |
| Lunch | ||
| 1 | Egg | 1/2 serving of Meat and Alternatives |
| 1 slice | Whole Grain Bread | 1 serving of Grain Products |
| 1/2 cup | Cut up Veggies | 1/2 serving of Vegetables and Fruit |
| 1/2 | Apple | 1/2 serving of Vegetables and Fruit |
| Afternoon Snack | ||
| 1/2 cup | Milk or Soymilk | 1/2 serving of Milk and Alternatives |
| 1/3 cup | Hummus | 1/2 serving of Meat and Alternatives |
| 1/2 | Pita | 1 serving of Grain Products |
| Total |
1 1/2 servings of Milk and Alternatives |
Examples of One Food Group Serving:
| Vegetables and Fruit | |
| 1 | Fruit (Apple, Orange, Banana, etc.) |
| 1/2 cup | Vegetables |
| 1/2 | Large Banana |
| 1/2 cup | Applesauce/Fruit Cocktail (packed in juice) |
| 5-6 | Baby carrots |
| 1 cup | Green Salad |
| Grain Products | |
| 1 | Slice whole grain bread |
| 1/2 cup | Rice, Couscous or Bulgur |
| 3/4 cup | Oatmeal or Cream of Wheat |
| 30 g | Cold Cereal |
| 1/2 cup | Whole wheat pasta |
| 1/2 | Pita or Tortilla (30 g) |
| Milk and Alternatives | |
| 1 cup | Milk, Fortified Soymilk or Chocolate milk |
| 50 g (1 1/2 oz) | Cheese |
| 3/4 cup | Yogurt |
| Meat and Alternatives | |
| 2 | Eggs |
| 75 g (2 1/2 oz) | Lean meat, Poultry or Fish |
| 3/4 cup | Beans or Hummus |
| 3/4 cup (175 ml) |
Tofu |
| 30 ml (2 tbsp) | Peanut Butter |