The first few years of children’s lives are marked by rapid development that is not matched by any other period of life.1 What children eat and its nutritional value contributes to both physical health and cognitive development, influencing their school readiness and academic success.
The first few years of life are a period of intense brain development. This period is vital, for example, in early language development, in the formation of pre-reading and pre-math skills, in symbol and pattern recognition, and in the early development of emotional control and social skills that lead to school success.
Every five years Congress renews the Child Nutrition Act, first signed into law in 1966, in an effort to improve overall child nutrition. The newest version ofthis law is called the Healthy, Hunger-Free Act for Kids and was signed in to law byPresident Obama on December 13, 2010.
While breastfeeding has been widely cited as the best practice for feeding babies, some mothers may not have this option due to post-partum depression, inability to produce milk, lack of
The health and well-being of children, and infants especially, are in large part determined by whether or not the child is receiving proper nutrition. The nutritional needs of babies are much different than those of adults, but they are fairly easy for informed parents to meet.
