All You Wanted to Know About Kids’ Calorie Intake

Most parents hardly monitor their kids’ calorie intake until they develop fat bellies. It is then that they take their kids to an expert who suggests that weight loss is possible only with calorie reduction. Naturally, those parents reduce their kids’ calorie intake to such a low level that kids actually end up getting malnourished. Remember that weight loss is just another way of getting healthy, and a malnourished kid cannot lose weight. So what do you do? You need to understand your kids’ nutritional requirements and then adjust their calorie consumption limits accordingly.

If you thought that the same calorie rules apply both to you and your kids, you couldn’t be further from truth. There is a big difference between the calorie requirement of an adult and that a child; unlike an adult, a child’s calorie requirements would keep changing as he grows older.

The usual growth period of a human starts at the age of twelve and continues until the age of 21. Further, the growth of human body would be in harmony with his age and body weight. For example, during the teenage period, the body is more likely to grow taller and build strong lean muscles. Therefore the teenage period is the most crucial period for any kid, and you need to make sure that your kid is getting ample nutrition during this time, as lack of proper nutrition could affect his bodily growth.

Now you might ask, how much daily calorie intake is necessary and how much is too much? That is a good question. According to experts, boys should have a minimum of 1,800 calories per day while for girls it is 1,200 calories. However, these are just genetic figures. Since the calorie requirements vary from person to person, your best bet is to have a consultation with your local doctor or nutritionist.

To be on the safe side, here are some tips:

1. Split your kids’ meals into several smaller meals. For example, if he usually has 3 meals per day, split each of these meals into two; that way, your kids would be having six smaller meals per day instead of three large. The big advantage of this eating technique is that since your kid’s body is not overloaded with a lot of calories at once, he is less likely to gain weight. At the same time, he gets the required nutrition too.

2. Make your kids eat only healthy and organic foods such as whole grains, raw fruits and vegetables. Remember that healthy foods are more nutritious and usually contain fewer calories than their unhealthier counterparts.

Remember that while an abnormally high calorie intake may make your kid obese, an abnormally low calorie intake would affect his health negatively. At the end of the day, it is all about maintaining a BALANCE.

Help other people discover this post

Looking to make a change and lose some weight? I have reviewed the top diet on the internet and you can go and read over 200 comments people have made about why this diet has worked well for them, as well as some of the problems.