Designed to assist child care center managers in planning nutritious meals for children in centers or licensed home day care programs, this guide presents information on the nutritional requirements of infants and children, sample menus for child care centers, and resources for further information. The first part of the guide details the nutritional needs of infants from birth to 1 year, including information on breast and bottle feeding; presents a guide to introducing solid food into infants' diets; and reviews the needs of toddlers to preadolescents, including information on calories and necessary vitamins and minerals. This section also addresses nutrition questions frequently asked by parents related to fiber, sugar and sugar substitutes, fat substitutes, salt, and planning the meal environment. The second part of the guide provides guidelines for planning meals in child care centers, a list of appropriate foods and serving sizes by child age, and sample menus to accommodate vegetarian, Hispanic, Jewish, Chinese, Vietnamese, and Southern United States children. Finally, the third part reviews sanitation and safety concerns in child care centers, providing information and checklists for avoiding food-related illnesses and accidents and descriptions of the Heimlich maneuver for infants and children and emergency breathing procedures. Appendixes provide growth charts, 13 recipes, and a list of resource agencies. (BCY)