Children
About Healthy Eating
Childhood is a time of learning. Children who grow up in families that enjoy a variety of nutritious foods from the Five Food Groups are more likely to make their own healthy choices as they get older.
Develope eating habits for your kid by teaching your own family to:
- Choose 'everyday foods' for home and school from the 5 food groups
- Save discretionary choices for special occasions
- Provide a variety of types and colours of fresh vegetables and fruit that are in season
- Eat a healthy breakfast every day
- Wash hands before eating or cooking
- Turn off tv and computers at mealtimes - make this family time
- Eat mainly wholegrain and cereal foods and bread
- Drink plenty of water instead of sugary drinks
About energy intake
- For a child between 2 and 3 years of age, the recommended daily caloric intake is 1000 to 1400 kcal/day; this requirement increases with the age of child
- Children during growth spurt (usually 8-13 years of age in girls and 10-15 years in boys) requires higher amounts of calories to maintain the body as well as to grow. The daily recommended caloric intake for children 11-12 years range between 1800 and 2200 kcal/day.
Estimated caloric need for children
| Infant | 1-3 years | 4-5 years | 6-8 years | 9+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100kcal/kg - day | 80kcal/kg - day | 70kcal/kg - day | 60-64kcal/kg - day | 93-45kcal/kg - day |
Caloric requirement for a child can be calculated using the table above
About Water
The daily recommended intake (DRI) of water depends on factors such as age, sex, weight activity status, air temperature, and humidity. Plain water is recommended as it serves the best way to fulfil this requirement.
It is extremely important to drink at least the minimum required amount of water for children as it improves memory and attention, helps children to maintain a healthy weight, reduces the risk for some chronic diseases, such as type 2 diabetes and heart diseases while also helping to prevent dental cavities, if fluoridated. However, in recent studies 75% of children fail to meet the daily recommended intake (DRI)
Here's a table which summarizes the DRI for children according to weight:
| 3.5-10kg | 11-20kg | 20kg | >20kg |
|---|---|---|---|
| 100ml/kg | 100ml/kg (first 10kg) 50ml/kg (every kg above10kg) |
1500ml | 1500/20kg (first 20kg) 20ml/kg (every kg above 20kg) |
The recommended best times to drink water includes:
- When you first get up
- Before each meal
- With snack
- Before a workout
- With medication if allowed
- Drink more water to prevent illness following exposures
- Have a glass when tired
In June 2009, “scientific American” published an article titled “Fact or Fiction? You must drink 8 glasses of Water Daily”. The article describes the 8x8 rule of thumb dictating that you must drink 8ox glasses of water every day. Tea, coffee, soda, juices and sports drinks do not count towards the eight-glass total. This is a simple guide that offers an easy way of measuring the approximate amount of daily water intake required for each individuals in all age groups.
Some healthy habits to increase your daily water intake:
- Always carry a bottle of clean water with you wherever you go
- Set a periodic reminder so that you don’t forget to drink water
- Exercise can help make you want to drink water more
- Keep a little log which can be as simple as a tick mark for each glass of water you drink