Counting Calories for Children

According to the Centers for Disease Control, rates of obesity among children 6 to 19 years old have tripled since 1980, and the rates of obesity among preschool-age children, 2 to 5 years old, have doubled. This not only means generations of people prone to a sedentary lifestyle and plagued by health concerns, but also a lifetime of rising and more frequent medical costs and visits. Getting children to lose weight or maintain a healthy weight can be difficult, as children have little motivation to change their diet or eat healthy.

Caloric Intake

• The first step toward counting calories for children is to realize that children have different nutritional and caloric requirements than adults. They can also change drastically depending on the age and gender of the child. For example, a 13-year-old girl has a recommended daily intake of 1,600 to 2,000 calories per day, while a boy of the same age can have 1,800 to 2,200 calories. But for an 8-year-old of either sex, only 1,400 to 1,600 calories per day are advised.

  You can help your child fill their daily requirement with healthier calories without resorting to complicated plans and weighing portions. Simply provide more healthy snacks, such as fresh vegetables instead of chips, and fruit instead of ice cream and candy.

Cutting Calories

• One way to begin cutting calories in children's diets is to curtail their intake of fast food. Fast food is generally high in fat, sodium and sugar and low in essential nutrients. Yet fast food companies heavily market toward children with toys, movie tie-ins and on-site playgrounds, making children demand to eat fast food over home-cooked meals. Factor in a population of parents working more and longer hours, and you have an epidemic of children getting too many of their meals from fast food. Nearly a third of children in the United States eat fast food every day.

  Another way to help reduce the daily caloric intake for children is to restrict the consumption of sugar. Soft drinks may be a quick way to quench a child's thirst, but they are full of empty calories and caffeine and lead to not only obesity but tooth decay. Children in general are regularly given sodas, candy, cakes, cookies and gum as rewards or snacks, thus encouraging a constant desire for sugar, and a connection between sweet-tasting foods and well-being and approval. But this constant dosing with sugar promotes not only obesity but a host of other physical and behavioral problems, such as learning difficulties, motivational and attitude problems, and energy and mood swings. Reducing sugar consumption is an easy way to lower caloric intake overall.