The nurse is providing nutrition information to the mother of a 1-year-old child. Which of these statements represents accurate information for this age group?

A) Maintaining adequate fat and caloric intake is important for a 1-year-old child.
B) The recommended dietary allowances for an infant are the same as for an adolescent.
C) The baby's growth is minimal at this age; therefore, caloric requirements are decreased.
D) The baby should be placed on skim milk to decrease the risk for coronary artery disease when he or she grows older.

Because of rapid growth, especially of the brain, both infants and children younger than 2 years of age should not drink skim or low-fat milk or be placed on low-fat diets. Fats (calories and essential fatty acids) are required for proper growth and central nervous system development. The recommended dietary allowances for infants and adolescents are not the same. There is a great deal of growth in the first 4 years of life both in length/height and in the brain. So, the correct answer is that maintaining adequate fat and caloric intake is important for a 1-year-old child.