Early years nutrition: What children need at every stage

Good nutrition in the early years isn’t just about today’s lunch. It’s about building a relationship with food that shapes how a child eats, grows and feels for the rest of their life. The food children encounter between birth and five years old — the flavours, textures, colours and mealtimes they experience — lays the groundwork for habits that can last a lifetime.

At Partou, we think about this every time we plan a menu. Not as a compliance exercise, but because we genuinely believe that what a child eats at nursery is every bit as important as what they learn there. Here’s what the evidence — and the Department for Education (DfE) Early Years Foundation Stage Nutrition Guidance — tells us about what children need at every stage.

0–12 months: Milk, complementary feeding and first foods

For the first six months of life, milk provides everything a baby needs — all the energy and nutrients required for healthy growth and development. The NHS recommends exclusive breastfeeding for around the first six months, with continued breastfeeding throughout the first year and beyond for as long as the parent or carer and baby wish to continue. For babies who are not breastfed, or where breastfeeding is not continued, first infant formula is the recommended alternative until a baby’s first birthday.

Complementary feeding (or weaning) — the introduction of solid foods — should begin at around six months, but only when a baby shows all three signs of readiness: the ability to sit up and hold their head steady, the ability to coordinate eyes, hands and mouth, and the ability to swallow food rather than push it back out. Age alone isn’t a reliable indicator, and at Partou we always follow a baby’s lead and maintain an ongoing conversation with parents about where their child is in the process.

When it comes to first foods, starting with a variety of flavours from the very beginning helps babies develop an adventurous palate that lasts a lifetime. The DfE guidance recommends introducing slightly bitter pureed vegetables first — such as broccoli, cauliflower and spinach — before sweeter options like carrot and sweet potato. Babies exposed only to sweet flavours early on can develop a strong preference for sweetness, making bitter and savoury foods harder to accept later. The window to build that openness is short, and the early years are the best time to make the most of it.

Texture matters as much as flavour. Moving from smooth purees to mashed, lumpy and eventually finger foods as soon as a baby is ready helps develop the muscles they need for chewing and swallowing. At Partou, we prepare food from scratch for our youngest children — never relying on pouches or pre-made purees — because we believe the range of textures and flavours that comes from real cooking is irreplaceable.

Foods to avoid in the first year include added salt and sugar, honey, unpasteurised cheeses, raw or lightly cooked eggs without the British Lion mark, and any food that poses a choking risk. Drinks should be limited to breast milk, first infant formula and water — no juice, squash, follow-on formula or cow’s milk as a main drink.

1–3 years: An important nutritional window

The period between one and three years is a significant nutritional window in a child’s life. This is when eating habits form, food preferences take root, and the foundations of lifelong health are laid. It’s also when fussiness tends to peak, which can make parents feel that their child is barely eating anything at all.

From twelve months, children move to a diet based on the four main food groups: fruit and vegetables; starchy carbohydrates such as bread, pasta, rice and potatoes; dairy or dairy alternatives; and protein from meat, fish, eggs, beans and pulses. The principles of variety and balance are relevant from the moment solid foods are established, with the Eatwell Guide applying fully from age two.

Iron is the nutrient most commonly deficient in this age group — and it matters more than many parents realise. Iron is essential for brain development, immune function and energy, and toddlers are at particular risk because their needs are high relative to their body size, and because many of the foods richest in iron — red meat, lentils, dark leafy greens — aren’t always popular with this age group. At Partou, we build iron-rich foods into our menus deliberately, pairing them with vitamin C-rich foods (like tomatoes, peppers or fruit) to help absorption.

Dairy remains important throughout this stage — three portions a day, including milk, cheese and yoghurt — but it’s full fat dairy that matters for under-twos. Young children need the calories and fat-soluble vitamins that full fat dairy provides, and switching to lower fat options too early can compromise their energy intake. From two years, lower fat options can be gradually introduced.

Milk as a drink should transition to whole cow’s milk or an unsweetened, calcium-fortified plant-based alternative from twelve months. The only drinks children need are milk and water — no juice, squash, smoothies or flavoured drinks. This isn’t about being restrictive. It’s about protecting teeth, managing sugar intake, and ensuring children’s appetite for food isn’t displaced by liquid calories.

On food refusal: it’s almost universal in toddlers, and it’s developmentally normal. Children in this age group are wired to be cautious about new foods — an evolutionary hangover from a time when unknown foods could be dangerous. The research consistently shows that it can take ten or more exposures to a new food before a child accepts it, and that pressure — including encouraging children to clear their plates or using rewards for eating — tends to make fussiness worse rather than better. At Partou, we never pressure children to eat, and shared mealtimes are central to how we approach food.

The variety of foods a child encounters in the early years has a direct impact on their willingness to try new things as they get older. A child whose meals include a wide range of herbs, spices, fruits, vegetables and starchy carbohydrates is developing a far broader palate than one who eats a narrow rotation of familiar dishes. At Partou, our menus are deliberately diverse — not for novelty, but because the evidence is clear that early food experiences shape lifelong eating habits.

3–5 years: Laying the groundwork for a lifetime

By this age, most children are eating broadly the same foods as the rest of the family — adapted in portion size, but essentially the same. This is a period of consolidation rather than introduction, and the focus shifts to reinforcing the eating habits, food attitudes and mealtime behaviours that will serve children well into school and beyond.

While appetite grows steadily through the three to five age range, portion sizes remain much smaller than adult equivalents. A rough guide is that a portion is roughly the size of a child’s clenched fist for most foods, though this varies considerably from child to child and day to day. At Partou, we start with smaller servings and offer more — because a child who is encouraged to ask for more is developing a much healthier relationship with hunger and fullness than one who is expected to clear a fixed portion.

The DfE guidance is clear that children should not be rewarded for eating — no stickers for finishing vegetables, no dessert as a prize for clearing a plate. At Partou we follow this fully — meals include a starter or second dish rather than always ending with a dessert, and no food is used as a reward or incentive. Using sweet or treat foods in this way can make them seem more desirable and special than everyday nutritious foods.

Oily fish — salmon, sardines, mackerel and similar — continues to feature on Partou menus at least once every three weeks throughout this age range, providing the omega-3 fatty acids essential for brain development. Processed meat products, fish products and meat alternatives are limited to no more than once a week each, as these tend to be higher in salt and saturated fat.

By three to five, children have often formed strong views about specific foods, and vegetables — particularly green ones — are frequent casualties. The evidence supports continued, low-pressure exposure over time: keep offering, keep serving, never make it a battle, and eat together as often as possible. At Partou our staff eat with the children, which means every mealtime is a natural modelling opportunity.

The transition to school at five brings a significant shift in food environment, and the experiences built in the early years can make a real difference. A child who has had the opportunity to sit at a table with others, practise using cutlery, explore a variety of foods, and experience mealtimes as enjoyable social occasions is well placed to navigate school food with confidence — and to carry those positive associations with eating into later life.

Common concerns answered

How Partou puts this into practice

Everything above shapes how we plan menus at Partou. Our menus are specially developed by a team of well-trained Accredited Partou Chefs,  audited by Laura Matthews, a Registered Nutritionist (RNutr) and one of the UK’s leading specialists in early years nutrition and reviewed against the DfE Early Years Foundation Stage Nutrition Guidance as standard.

Every meal is planned with the full picture in mind — age-appropriate textures and portions, iron-rich proteins, varied vegetables, seasonal produce, and the cultural diversity that broadens children’s palates from an early age. Learn more about how we develop our nursery menus.

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