Although preschoolers intake from meal to meal may appear erratic, they actually have the capacity to adjust their food intake to meet their body's needs on average. But this ability can be diminished when large food portion sizes are frequently offered. 

Young children don't have the ability to choose a well-balanced diet. They depend on adults to offer a variety of nutritious and developmentally appropriate foods. 

How can you raise intuitive eaters? 

Pay attention to serving sizes. Serve meals on smaller plates, bowls and cups, which encourage age-appropriate serving sizes. Don’t make children clean their plates or offer dessert as a reward for finishing their meal.

Remember, your job as a parent is to offer nutritious foods, a calm environment for eating and regular meal and snack times. Your child’s job is then to decide whether to eat what is offered and how much.

For children, the biggest source of added sugar is usually not in what they eat, but rather what they drink.

That’s why it’s important to pay attention to what your child is drinking. Many drinks have sugar and syrups added when they are made. Added sugars can increase risk of developing diabetes, heart disease, obesity and tooth decay.

How to minimize sugary drinks:

- Serve water and milk at meals instead of soda, sports drinks, lemonade or sweet tea.

- Limit fruit juice to 4 oz between ages 1-3, 4-6 oz between ages 4-6, and 8 oz after age 7.

- Offer your child whole fruit instead, which has less sugar and has fiber and other important nutrients!

Between 12-24 months, toddlers develop motor skills to use utensils. Giving opportunities to master self-feeding skills allows the older toddler (2 years) to consume most of the same food offered to the family (with some extra preparation to prevent choking).

Promote learning:

Toddlers learn through exploration of the world around them. By providing structured mealtimes at the dining table, supportive social interaction and guidance while eating - your child will learn about social rules like manners and mealtime behavior by simply watching you! Just be patient and positive while your toddler transitions from this free exploration of the world in infancy to the big kid world that does indeed, come with some rules.

Over the past 20 years, portion sizes have increased dramatically. The National Institute of Health calls it portion distortion. Try using smaller bowls (like our 8 oz / 1 cup) bowl to help create appropriate age-based serving sizes.