8 Apps to Help Support Child Nutrition

By: Kate McLaughlin

There are hundreds of apps out there that can help with nutrition for the whole family. As a busy mom, I know how hard it is to find time to do adequate meal planning while also being conscious of the nutrition I am serving my family.

I put together a list of my top apps to help you navigate the world of child nutrition (and nutrition for your whole family). Most of these apps are free which is awesome, but there are few great ones that cost a couple dollars. I hope you enjoy these apps as much as my family has!

1. Meal Snap: ($2.99) This is an app that takes a photo of the food on your plate, then delivers an estimated calorie count. The app lets you categorize your snapshots as specific meals and/or snacks, and keeps a running tally of your daily total.

2. Shopwell: (Free) ShopWell was created by a team of Registered Dietitians with a passion for making it easier for you to shop for healthier food at the grocery store. A team of enthusiastic nutrition experts offer you personalized suggestions for your health goals.

3. Fooducate: (Free) Track your calories, macros, and workouts. Get motivation from the most supportive community in the world. Fooducate is the only app that analyzes and recommends foods based on their ingredient quality.

4. Restaurant Nutrition: (Free) A tool for making the healthy choice easier when you're out at a restaurant. It also comes in handy for dieters on a road trip, looking to locate healthy eats.

5: 5 A Day: (Free) Trying to keep up your fruit and vegetable consumption? Create a healthy habit by recording your numbers quickly with a simple interface. You can easily review how well you are doing in a month view.

6: Daily Water Tracker Reminder: (Free) Set your daily water intake goal and then log every ounce (or milliliter) with just a tap. View a detailed stats update after every glass to see how close you’re getting to your daily goal, or review 7- and 30-day charts for an idea of your overall progress.

7: MyFitnessPal: (Free) Take control of your goals. Track calories, break down ingredients, and log activities with MyFitnessPal.

8: The Human Body Lite: (Free) This app is a fun interactive app for kids. It is an exploratory app that kids can play around, such as feed the person food, have him drink some water, and kids can see the reaction of the body. Every time we get on it, we find something new. It is a must have.