Info on Calories Req'd for Kids?

BrewerGeorge

Does anybody have any information on the number of calories that kids need?

I do ALL of the cooking for my family and since I'm dieting, they're eating lower calorie healthier meals, too. But what may be a 600 Calorie dinner for me ends up looking like 250 or so on a picky 10-yr old's plate. The bulk I'm adding for me is filling her up more quickly as well and aggravating the problem. I'm a bit concerned that she might not be getting enough calories. She's active and not overweight AT ALL and she snacks relatively freely, but I'd still like some more info to ease my mind.

How many calories should a 10 yr old, 65 lb girl eat in a day to maintain healthy weight?

krysydawn

http://pediatrics.about.com/library/bl_calorie_calc.htm

Artemis_Acorn

According to the American Heart Association, 1600 calories for a sedentary girl that age and it goes up with activity.


http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/GettingHealthy/Dietary-Recommendations-for-Healthy-Children_UCM_303886_Article.jsp

CelenaOlson

She should eat as much or as little as she wants to, but just really, really, really limit the junk, esp pop and such. No active kid will eat too little or too much if there's only healthy options around. The problem comes when she only eats one TYPE of food. If every dinner she only eats the starch, for instance. Give her smaller portions, with half the total food being veggies or fruit, and make sure she eats from each type of food. Don't worry about her intake right now. She's at a delicate age, and if you start stressing about her food, she will too, and you could help her towards an eating disorder.

CelenaOlson

ALSO, many kids will eat less when it's hot. I barely ate at all in the summers when I was a kid. I just wasn't hungry!

DrBorkBork

Don't worry about it. You control the quality, let the kid control the quantity. It will average out over the week. One of the worst thing we can do to a kid is mess with their natural hunger impulses. If they're not hungry, they won't eat. It's a valuable life survival skill we sometimes lose as teenager & adults.

LauraMarie37

That's a great question and I'm curious to see what people say. I think there is a rule of thumb (like x number calories for every y pounds) - my mom is a pediatric dietitian - but I can't remember it to save my life.

The only thing I'd say, based on conversations with my mom, is that - *unless your daughter has picked up on certain food cues from someone she looks up to in your house (like being hungry is good because it means you're losing weight, or one's value in society comes from one's ability to control what they eat, etc)* - children are remarkably good at knowing how many calories they should have. For the most part, all humans are born with an intrinsic "I need more" and "I've had enough and should stop" mechanism, and it's not until we get older and override it with eating/not eating for emotional reasons that we lose the ability to self-regulate. So if your daughter is saying she's hungry, add some more healthy fats (nuts, olive oil, etc) or even carbs (which are important for brain functioning at that age) to her plate. If she isn't saying she's hungry, you're probably ok.

BrewerGeorge

I know those calculators are geared towards obese kids, which is sort of the opposite of my question, but they're telling me 1600-2000 per day. I'd be shocked if she's getting that - though I don't know what she's eating at school. (Whatever genius decided that elementary school kids should have a CHOICE of what to eat for lunch was crazy. OF COURSE they're going to choose Bosco sticks and fries over the balanced Type A lunch. Duh.) Hell, I'M barely eating 1600 Calories per day and I'm over four times her weight.

It wasn't as big a deal when I was producing 800-900 Calorie (adult portion) dinners regularly, now that they're half that though... I guess I'm going to have to watch closely what she eats for a few days and see what she's really taking in. She doesn't have any excess to lose and I don't want my weight loss plan to adversely affect her.

supermom1114

Kids when eating real whole foods can naturally self regulate how much they should be eating. You as the parent control the quality of food she eats and she as the child controls the quantity. Just be sure to have healthy snacks available inbetween meals like fruits with peanut butter, veggies with ranch dip, cheese and crackers, etc. And don't be afraid to go out and let her have a treat every once in a while. Kids need to learn to eat both healthy and not so great foods in balance. Don't demonize any food or label any real food as bad or good. Food-like substances like cheetos and coke are another story.

DrBorkBork

Kids when eating real whole foods can naturally self regulate how much they should be eating. You as the parent control the quality of food she eats and she as the child controls the quantity. Just be sure to have healthy snacks available inbetween meals like fruits with peanut butter, veggies with ranch dip, cheese and crackers, etc. And don't be afraid to go out and let her have a treat every once in a while. Kids need to learn to eat both healthy and not so great foods in balance. Don't demonize any food or label any real food as bad or good. Food-like substances like cheetos and coke are another story.

Word! Not so much on ranch dip though, unless you watch the ingredient list (sorry, but the hidden valley stuff grates me wrong). But kids definitely need to learn how to enjoy all foods, and in moderation. Food should be enjoyed, not feared.

christine24t

maybe this will help!!
http://teamnutrition.usda.gov/Resources/mpk_poster2.pdf

Also, this game is fun and can help you and your daughter make good food choices!! http://www.choosemyplate.gov/kids/kids_game.html#