Baby and Toddler Feeding Timeline
The need for excellent nutrition early in life starts from birth. Learn about the food timelines for babies with our baby food timeline and toddler feeding chart.
Tiny newborns have different nutritional needs than older infants. And growing toddlers have different requirements, too. Read on for helpful feeding guidelines and the timeline that takes your little one from the first day feeding through the first few years of toddlerhood.
Newborn feeding
Feeding your newborn baby starts with nourishment solely from breast milk and/or baby formula. The breast milk or formula introduces essential vitamins and nutrients like
| Newborn Feeding: Birth - 3 Months (these amounts are shown as a guide) |
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| Breast Milk Every 2-3 hours (8-12 feedings per day), on demand. |
| Formula Every 3-4 hours (6-8 feedings per day), on demand, about 2-3 ounces per feeding. |
| Grains None |
| Fruit and Vegetables None |
| Dairy, Meat and Poultry None |
Infant feeding guidelines: 4-6 months
At 4-6 months, your baby now has the strength and basic coordination to hold their head upright and sit with support, so you can think about starting to introduce semi-solid foods as long as your little one has met key developmental milestones.
Pro Tip:
Try one new type of food every 3-5 days and watch for signs of allergy from it, like diarrhea, rash, or vomiting. Due to their acidic qualities, do not introduce fruit juices in the first six months and then limit serves to 4-6 fl. oz of 100% juice per day.
Maintaining a balanced diet in this stage of your baby food timeline is important for growth. So, avoid adding sugar or salt to foods and check with your baby’s doctor for any concerns like deficiencies of any key ingredients.
| Infant Feeding: 4-6 Months |
|---|
| Breast Milk On demand about 6-8 feedings per day. |
| Formula 4-5 feedings per day, 5-7 fl oz per feeding. |
| Grains Start baby on iron-fortified rice or barley cereal mixed with breast milk or formula. |
| Fruit and Vegetables Introduce a single pureed fruit or vegetable and feed it for 3-5 days before starting another. |
| Dairy, Meat and Poultry Pureed meats. |
Infant feeding guidelines: 6-9 months
At about eight months of your baby feeding timeline, you can begin feeding your baby finger foods that are easy to pick up so your baby can feed independently. Plan for a mess and be patient. Continue feeding your baby breast milk or formula. These intakes will decrease some as your baby consumes more solid foods. Never give infants raisins, nuts, popcorn or small, hard pieces of food, as these can be choking hazards. And remember, do not give honey to a baby under one year.
| Infant Feeding: 6-9 Months |
|---|
| Breast Milk On demand about 4-6 feedings per day. |
| Formula 4-5 feedings per day, 6-8 fl oz per feeding (up to a maximum of about 32 fl oz a day). |
| Grains Start finger foods that have more texture, like oat cereal or toast fingers. |
| Fruit and Vegetables Pureed or mashed fruits and vegetables. |
| Dairy, Meat and Poultry Yogurt, pureed or finely ground meats and chicken. |
Toddler feeding guidelines
After the first year, you'll probably notice a decline in your toddler's appetite as you evolve your toddler feeding timeline. If you have noticed this, don't worry, as the rapid growth rate up until is finally slowing and your little one doesn't require as much food. Some parents make a toddler feeding chart to see what is working, what food is liked and what is refused. A toddler may need repeated exposure to new foods before accepting them. If you get rejected, don’t give up or show disappointment, just offer it another day.
Even with the slightly reduced intake, toddlers need about 1,000 calories a day. Since they eat toddler-sized portions, offer 3 meals and 3 snacks daily. Give your toddler water for thirst. Avoid giving too much fruit juice—it's loaded with sugar. Serve less than 4-6 ounces of juice a day as it is naturally high in sugars. To create balance and to keep things interesting for your toddler’s food explorations, feed a variety from the 4 basic food groups below.
| Toddler Feeding: 9-12 Months |
|---|
| Breast Milk On demand about 4 or more feedings per day. |
| Formula 4 feedings per day, 6-8 fl. oz per feeding (About 24-32 fl. oz per day). |
| Grains Fortified cereal grains including finger foods like crackers (A serving is 3 Tbsp). |
| Fruit and Vegetables 4 servings of fruits and vegetables per day (A serving is 2-4 Tbsp) |
| Dairy, Meat and Poultry 1 serving of yogurt or finely chopped meat or poultry (A serving is 2-4 Tbsp) |
| Toddler Feeding: 1-2 Years |
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Milk and Other Dairy
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Grains
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Fruit and Vegetables
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Meat, Fish, Poultry, and Eggs
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| Toddler Feeding: 2-3 Years |
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| Milk and Other Dairy 16 fl oz low-fat or skim cow's milk per day. Offer low-fat yogurt and other dairy products, as wellOn demand about 4 or more feedings per day. |
| Grains Fortified cereals, breads, crackers, rice, pasta as appetite demands. |
| Fruit and Vegetables About 2-3 cups of fruits and vegetables divided over a day. |
| Meat, Fish, Poultry, and Eggs 2 servings of lean meat, eggs, fish, poultry or cooked dried beans per day. A serving can be 3-4 Tbsp. |
As your baby grows into a toddler and they move along this baby food timeline, you will need to ensure that your little one gets the right healthy fats, proteins,
