Childhood Nutrition Basics
When considering their children's nutrition, parents often think more about fat grams, carbs, and calories, and forget about calcium, a mineral that is important to help build strong and healthy bones.
Calcium Requirements
How much calcium do your kids need?
It depends on how old they are, but the American Academy
of Pediatrics recommends that children who are:
- 1-3 years
old get 500mg per day (about 2 servings of milk)
- 4-8 years
old get 800mg per day (about 3 servings of milk)
- 9-18 years
old get 1300mg per day (about 4 servings of milk)
Unfortunately, most children, especially teens,
get much less than their recommended daily requirements for calcium. This makes
it important to think about calcium as you plan your children's diet.
Foods With Calcium
Milk is the food that is most often
associated as being high in calcium.
It is important to note that there are
plenty of other foods that are good sources of calcium though, including other
dairy products, many vegetables, calcium fortified orange juice, and other
calcium fortified foods.
Foods that are good sources of calcium can
include:
- low fat
plain yogurt: 300-450mg per serving (1 cup)
- american
cheese: 350mg per serving (2 oz)
- cow's
milk (either whole milk or low fat milk):
300mg per serving (1 cup)
- calcium
fortified soy milk, rice milk, or goat's milk:
300mg per serving (1 cup)
- calcium
fortified orange juice: 300mg per serving (1
cup)
- cheddar
cheese: 300mg per serving (1.5 oz)
- cooked
dried white beans: 161mg per serving (1 oz)
- dried
figs: 169mg per serving (10 figs)
- spinach: 120mg per serving (1 cup raw or 1/2 cup cooked)
- soft
serve ice cream: 118mg per serving (1/2 cup)
- oranges: 50mg per serving (1 medium orange)
- instant
oatmeal: 100mg (1 packet)
- sweet
potatoes: 44mg per serving (1/2 cup mashed)
- broccoli: 35mg per serving (1 1/2 cup raw or 1/2 cup cooked)
Dark green, leafy vegetables, tofu, lentils, sardines, and salmon, are also good sources of calcium, which in addition to soy milk and orange juice, are good sources of calcium for kids with a milk allergy.
Foods or meals that are prepared with the above foods, such
as pizza, a grilled cheese sandwich, lasagna, or a burrito with beans and
cheese, are also good ways to get enough calcium.
Keep in mind that the amount of calcium in many prepared
foods can vary depending on which brand you buy. For example, one type of
cheese might have only 5% of your child's daily allowance of calcium (about
50mg), while another might have 30% or 300mg. Reading food labels
and being on the lookout for foods that have at least 20-30% calcium can help
to make sure that your kids are getting enough calcium.
And remember that kids over age 9 years need 1300mg of
calcium, which is above the 1000mg or 100% daily value that is listed on food
labels. So while you can still add up the % Daily Value of calcium for each
food your kids eat to see if they are getting enough, make sure it adds up to
130% for older kids.
Calcium Fortified Foods
Many other foods, including bread and
cereal, may also be fortified with calcium, and can help boost your child's
daily intake of calcium. Check the nutrition facts label to find those brands
that are fortified with calcium.
Calcium Supplements
It can be hard to get kids enough calcium
if they don't like milk, yogurt, and orange juice. Making things even more
difficult is the fact that these types of picky eaters are also unlikely to
want to eat other foods that are good sources of calcium, such as spinach and
broccoli.
You may have to ask your Pediatrician if your older child can take Tums or a calcium chew vitamin, like Viactiv, if your kids aren't getting much calcium from other sources. At 500mg each, these supplements make it easy to make sure your kids are getting enough calcium.
If your kids do drink some milk, consider adding a packet of Nestle Carnation Instant Breakfast mix to boost the calcium content of a glass of milk by another 250mg. If your kids drink it with a grilled cheese sandwich made with bread and cheese that are 'high in calcium,' then they may get up to 900mg of calcium in one meal!
