Nutritional Advice for Preschoolers

The MyPyramid service from the USDA is familiar nutritional advice, but it has improved to offer personalized eating plans depending on your age and activity level. There is even a special MyPyramid for pregnant and nursing women.

Now, the angular-shaped advice comes tailor-made for the pickiest of eaters: preschoolers.

The USDA announced this week the MyPyramid for Preschoolers website, designed for children 2 to 5 years old.

You can get a customized nutrition plan for your little one by entering the child's name, sex, age, and activity level. (The website's authors caution that this is a guide, and that parents shouldn't be concerned if their preschooler doesn't eat the exact amount suggested. In other words, don't fret about those occasional cereal-for-dinner days.)

The website also offers interactive tools including a growth chart you can use to find out about normal development, new foods to try with picky eaters and healthy, kid-friendly snack suggestions.

Some parents with young children are enthusiastic about the new service — and hopeful about less stressful mealtimes.

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