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How Much Protein Do Kids Need?

I've never been one to carve fruit into snowflakes or mold rice into animal shapes for my kids' lunchboxes. But I'm no slouch either. This morning's assemblage included edamame and fennel salami from a butcher at our farmers' market. The kids do eat well.

And as long as I'm on lunch duty, they'll have plenty of protein options—because don't we all need more protein? At least that's the message I get at the grocery store. Haven't you noticed? From savory snacks to ice cream to bottled water, it's all about the protein content these days. It makes me worry whether my girls are getting enough. But how much is enough?

18 High-Protein Nut-Free Snacks for Kids

For answers, I turned to Dr. Natalie Digate Muth, a pediatrician and nutrition expert in Carlsbad, California, author of The Picky Eater Project and a spokeswoman for the American Academy of Pediatrics.

Protein is necessary

The first thing Muth tells me: "Overall, kids need way less protein than we think they do." This is good news. I feel better already.

Kids do need protein, though. As the Institute of Medicine puts it, it's "the major structural component of all cells in the body." It's crucial for building and repairing muscles and providing energy for growing kids, but really, every cell, tissue, and organ needs protein to work properly.

But there is such a thing as too much protein, and to my surprise, Muth says that's more the issue.

"Given its importance, of course we want our kids to eat enough, but be assured, most kids eat far more protein than they need," she says. "Protein isn’t really stored in the body so too much of it doesn’t make kids any stronger. Rather, it is broken down and then stored as fat in the body."

So how much protein do kids need?

It depends on age, gender, and weight. If you want to do the actual math, children ages 4 to 13 need about .45 grams of protein for every pound of body weight, says Muth.

Generally speaking, that's 3 to 5 ounces—or roughly 20 to 35 grams—of protein a day, says Muth.

Should Kids Drink Whole Milk or Low-Fat Milk?

Or think of it this way. A palm-sized portion of meat or fish is equivalent to about 3 ounces of protein—20 grams. An 8-ounce glass of milk is 8 grams of protein. Just 1 tablespoon of peanut butter is 5 grams of protein. Get all three and your kid is ahead of the game.

Teens' needs run a little higher: they should consume .4 grams of protein per pound of body weight, or about 46 grams of protein for girls and 52 grams for boys a day.

What kinds of protein should kids eat?

Meat, poultry, and fish are obvious go-tos. Often called "complete proteins," these foods have all the essential amino acids—the building blocks of protein—in the right amounts that the body needs. (Soybeans, quinoa, and hemp are vegetarian complete proteins.)

But nuts, legumes, seeds, dairy, and eggs are also great protein sources, especially when combined, the AAP says: a bowl of rice and beans, say, or nut butter spread on whole-grain bread, or even hummus and pita. That way, these so-called incomplete proteins balance out what they lack individually in certain amino acids.

The key is variety—and keeping it real. "I suggest getting as much protein and all nutrients as possible from 'real food,' as minimally processed and packaged as possible," says Muth. Most of our kids don't need a scoop of protein powder in their morning smoothie, and can snack on granola bars instead of protein bars.

With that, I'm off to buy more (but not too much) edamame.

How much protein a child needs to develop properly

Protein is the main building material, so a growing child's body needs it even more than an adult.

What causes a lack of protein in a child's diet:

• intellectual and emotional retardation (transmitters of nerve impulses are made of protein),
• reduced immunity (antibodies are made up of protein),
• abnormal development of endocrine glands (hormones and enzymes are also from protein),
• developmental disorders of bone tissue.

The amount of protein in the diet depends on two variables: the age and weight of the child. The younger the child, the more protein he should consume for every kilogram of body weight.

To get the daily protein requirement for newborn babies, take and add the two values.

• Multiply the baby's weight in kg by 0.9. You will get the first value - the amount of protein needed to maintain nitrogen balance. This number does not change during the first year of life.
• Multiply the baby's weight in kg by 1.5 if he is 1-2 months old and by 1.2 if he is 11-12 months old. If the baby is between 2 and 11 months old, multiply his weight in kg by intermediate values. You will receive a second value, which changes during the first year of life.

Not only quantity but also quality of protein is important for a child. The highest quality protein (suitable for composition and 100% digestible) is protein from mother's milk.

When your baby is 4-6 months old, complementary foods can be introduced. It is needed to support the children's body during the period of increased growth of muscle and connective tissues.

Intestinal infections, dysbacteriosis, allergies and other problems in the digestive system impair the absorption of protein from mother's milk.

It is also poorly absorbed in children with weakened functions of the stomach, pancreas, small and large intestine, as well as in violation of intestinal motility and transit.

The recommended daily amount of protein is calculated from these losses.

Scientists did not agree on a single formula for calculating the daily protein intake for children, so we offer average values.

Animal protein is essential for children, as it is most similar in composition to the protein in the body of a child.

Calculate the protein intake for your child, feed him varied, so that the digestive tract is strengthened and the protein is absorbed.

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Proteins, fats and carbohydrates in baby food

Proteins are important for a young child, being the main building material for cells and tissues of the body. They are part of all vital compounds - enzymes, hormones, antibodies, etc.

Inadequate intake of protein from food can lead to a slowdown in growth and weight gain, reduced immunity, impaired neuropsychic development, hematopoiesis and other disorders. For young children, not only the amount of protein in the diet is important, but also its quality, which is determined by the composition of its amino acids.

Of particular value are essential amino acids, which are not synthesized in the child's body, but come only with food. The main sources of essential amino acids are animal proteins (milk and dairy products, meat, eggs, fish). For children aged 1 to 3 years, the percentage of required animal protein content is 70%

However, not only an insufficient amount of protein, but also its excess in nutrition can lead to serious shifts, increasing the risk of developing obesity, diabetes mellitus and arterial hypertension in the future . So, an excess of protein in the diet is associated with accelerated growth and the risk of developing obesity, creates an increased burden on the child's kidneys, and increases the risk of developing allergic diseases.

An interesting fact is that the consumption of meat protein is not associated with an increase in the accumulation of adipose tissue. It is the increased consumption of milk protein that is associated with the accumulation of adipose tissue. How can excess protein in baby food affect the development of obesity in the future? If a child receives more protein than required, then “unused” amino acids accumulate in the blood. Among them are the so-called "insulinogenic". It is the excess of these amino acids that contributes to an increase in the level of insulin in the blood and, as a result, to the formation of more fat cells.

Breast milk contains the ideal protein for the baby, both in quantity (9-12 g/l) and in quality. Therefore, continued breastfeeding is critical to long-term health.

Important!

Protein requirement is 36 g/day for children aged 1 to 2 years, 42 g/day for children aged 2 to 3 years.

There is no need to rush to introduce cow's milk into the child's diet, since the protein content in it is 3 times higher than the needs of his body. For children under 3 years old, special adapted products should be preferred.

Choose a healthy milk for a baby over a year old

Fats, like proteins, are of great importance for the child's body, being a building material for the cell framework, serve as the main source of energy and fat-soluble vitamins (A, D, E, K), take part in immune reactions.

Milk and vegetable fats are used in the nutrition of young children. Milk fat is easily digestible, contains vitamins (A, D), carotene, choline, cholesterol. Vegetable fats are a source of polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFAs), which are not synthesized in the body and come only with food, as well as vitamin E. PUFAs are involved in the formation of the nervous system, the organ of vision, and have an immunomodulatory effect.

Important!

The proportion of vegetable fats in the diet should be at least 25-30% of the total amount of fat. The fat requirement is 40 g/day for children aged 1 to 2 years, 47 g/day for children aged 2 to 3 years.

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates, like proteins and fats, are the main components of food. One of the main functions of carbohydrates is to provide the body with energy. The contribution of carbohydrates to the energy value of the diet is 55-58%.

There are three types of carbohydrates: sugars, starches, and dietary fiber. Carbohydrates can only be absorbed in the form of monosaccharides; for this, the body has special enzymes that break down carbohydrates to such a state. If there is no enzyme, or it is not active enough, carbohydrates are not absorbed. A manifestation of this condition may be excessive gas formation, loose stools or constipation, etc. In children of the first year of life, the main carbohydrate is lactose (milk sugar) contained in breast milk.

Physiological immaturity of the child, diseases associated with dysfunction of the gastrointestinal tract, may be manifested by lactase deficiency (if the child's lactase enzyme, which should break down lactose, is not active enough). In such cases, the pediatrician should prescribe an enzyme or select an adequate diet in which lactose is absent or its amount is reduced. With the introduction of complementary foods, the child begins to receive starches that are part of cereal cereals.

In a small child, enzymes that break down starches do not yet work at full capacity. Therefore, manufacturers of industrial cereals use a special technology for splitting cereals. This contributes to a more complete digestion and absorption of carbohydrates by the child's body, reduces the viscosity of porridge. And, importantly, it reduces the addition of sugar to porridge, since after splitting carbohydrates become sweeter, the natural sweetness of cereals appears.

Dietary fiber is an indigestible carbohydrate.

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