Nutritious Snacks for Pre-school Children

Young children have small appetites and commonly eat four to six times a day. Healthy snacks are important, as they provide a sizable amount of nutrients to the toddler or pre-school child’s diet. “Empty calories" or “junk foods" (like sweet desserts, soft drinks, fruit-flavored drinks, sugar-coated cereals, chips, gummy fruit snacks or candy) should be limited because they do not give your child’s body the nutrients needed for growth.

Listed below are some examples of healthy snack choices for your child. Remember, you can also help promote good nutrition by setting a good example. Foods which are hard, round, and do not dissolve easily can cause choking. These types of foods should not be given to children less than three years of age.

Snack Ideas

• Always best to start with fruits and vegetables
• Fresh fruit can be paired with cheese slices
• Raw vegetables can be paired with cheese, hummus, or ranch dressing (Thinly slice vegetables to reduce risk of choking.)
• Greek yogurt with fruit
• Small sandwiches (egg salad, tuna, cheese, peanut butter, chicken salad, turkey, ham). Omit bologna and other highly processed meats.
• Hard cooked or deviled eggs
• Cheese toast
• String or sliced cheese
• Peanut butter or Sunflower butter on crackers, thinly spread
• Graham crackers with cream cheese or peanut butter
• Granola bars with less than 7 grams of sugar. (Toddlers can choke easily on nuts, so be careful of bars which contain them.)
• Pretzels or whole grain crackers
• Low sugar cereal with milk
• Banana or peeled apple slices with thinly spread peanut butter

Foods to Avoid / High Risk for Choking

• Hot dogs
• Hard, sticky candy
• Nuts
• Grapes
• Popcorn
• Jelly beans
• Hard, raw fruits and vegetables
• Peanut butter (chunky or spread thickly)
• Peanuts
• Chewing gum