All children, especially infants, must have adequate nutrition to help them grow in a healthy way. Child care providers need to work closely with families to ensure that all children in your child care program receive healthy, well-balanced meals and snacks. There are a variety of ways to provide good nutrition for infants. Some infants are breastfed, and others are fed infant formula. Most infants will eat from a bottle while they are in child care, but mothers who are breastfeeding may come to your program to nurse their infants during the day. Working with the family to set up a feeding plan for each infant in your child care program will help ensure that all infants are healthy and well-nourished. The following articles explain ways you can encourage breastfeeding, ways to prepare and feed bottles safely, and strategies to help families introduce solid foods to infants.
