High Protein Diet for Kids

Children's bodies use protein to create muscles, blood, skin, hair, nails and internal organs; to replace and form new tissue; to transport oxygen and nutrients; and to make antibodies. Many children with cancer have increased protein needs. While protein is a critical part of a child's diet, too much can be harmful.

Need

• According to nutritionists at the Children's Nutrition Research Center at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, a healthy 1- to 3-year-old child needs .55 g of protein per pound of body weight per day. A healthy 4- to 6-year-old needs .50, a healthy 7- to 14-year-old needs .45, and a healthy 15 to 18 year old needs .40.

Specific Foods

• According to the Lucile Packard Children's Hospital at Stanford, high-protein foods include meats (beef, chicken, fish, turkey, lamb), milk, cheese, eggs, peanut butter, dried beans and peas. You can add protein to your child's food by mixing powdered milk into his potatoes, soups, yogurts and puddings. Another good source of protein is wheat germ, which you can sprinkle into your child's meat dishes, cookies and cereals. Health food stores sell nutritional supplements containing high amounts of protein. The Lucile Packard Children's Hospital recommends consulting your child's physician before adding a nutritional supplement to her diet.

Warning

• The American Heart Association doesn't recommend high-protein diets, which it says are usually high in saturated fat. Over time, consuming too much protein and saturated fat can lead to coronary heart disease, diabetes, stroke, cancer, kidney disorders, liver disorders and osteoporosis. High-protein diets may not provide adequate vitamins, minerals, fiber and other nutritional elements. How much protein a child should be consuming depends on the age and gender of the child. Family Education, life.familyeducation.com, provides a chart you can use to calculate the protein needs of each member of your family.