A current review of the international diet and nutritional recommendations for infants and toddlers

The rate of growth during infancy and early childhood is the fastest in the lifespan. Energy and various nutrients provided by diet play key roles in the proper growth of infants and toddlers. This article reviews the current international standards and dietary guidelines published by international public health agencies for infants and toddlers from birth to age 6. We divided the related issues into three areas: 1. dietary reference intakes (DRIs), 2. dietary guidelines for infants and toddlers, 3. infant formulae. Published information from Taiwan, the USA, Japan, Singapore and WHO was analyzed with regard to the first two areas. The infant formula issues included the current domestic and international formula standards and "change the milk" concept. The main suggestions are as follows, more research is needed in food composition and dietary assessment methodology in order to revise the recommended nutrient intakes for infants and toddlers. We also need to encourage multi-disciplinary collaboration in order to develop a better framework for nutrition education. Although the promotion of breastfeeding is gradually catching on international trends, issues regarding formula feeding are rarely discussed. The current commercial market for infant formula needs more comprehensive regulation by governmental agencies in order to protect consumers.