Everyone requires a base amount of calories per day to simply live, without exercising or even moving. Your resting metabolic rate, or RMR, represents this base number, according to The Diet Channel, a website that offers health and diet articles provided by professionals. Your RMR rises in relation to your age and lifestyle. People who get a great deal of exercise need more calories than those who get none at all. But daily recommended requirements go beyond the number of calories you consume. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has issued specific guidelines as to what foods the calories should come from.
Men
Men older than 18 need between 2,000 and 3,000 calories daily, according to the USDA. A younger man who is very active requires 3,000. A man older than 50 who only expends the energy necessary for day-to-day living needs 2,000. The USDA recommends that a man between these two extremes on a 2,600 calorie a day diet should eat 2 cups of fruit, 3.5 cups of vegetables, 9 oz. of grains, 6.5 oz. of meat or beans, 3 cups of milk and 8 tsp. of oils. A cup of 100 percent fruit juice is equal to one cup of fruit. You'll need two cups of leafy green vegetables to meet a cup of the vegetable requirement.
Women
Women older than 18 require between 1,600 and 2,400 calories a day. The USDA says that a woman in her 20s who is very active needs 2,400 calories a day. A woman older than 50 who gets little in the way of exercise requires only 1,600 calories a day. An active lifestyle means walking at least three miles per day at no less than three miles per hour in addition to regular daily activity. Food sources for an average woman's caloric intake of 2,000 a day include 2 cups of fruit, 2.5 cups of vegetables, 6 oz. of grains, 5.5 oz. of meat or beans, 3 cups of milk, and 6 tsp. of oils. Half of the grain portion should include whole grains.
Children
The range of calories necessary for a child to thrive ranges from 1,000 a day for a toddler who gets no physical play time to 3,200 for an athletic 18-year-old young man. Active toddlers can require up to 1,400 calories a day. A teenage girl who engages in sports needs up to 2,400 calories a day. A daily diet suitable for a toddler includes 1 cup of fruit, 1.5 cups of vegetables, 4 oz. of grains, 3 oz. of meat and beans, 2 cups of milk and 4 tsp. of oils for 1,200 calories a day. An active teenager requires 2.5 cups of fruit, 3.5 cups of vegetables, 10 oz. of grains, 7 oz. of meat and beans, 3 cups of milk and 8 tsp. in the form of oils for a 2,800 calorie diet, according to the USDA. One egg equals 1 oz. from the meat and beans protein group. Products that don't offer much calcium, such as cream cheese or butter, do not count toward the milk and dairy quota.
Special Needs
If your weight is consistently the same month to month, you are probably consuming the right amount of calories your body needs to sustain your lifestyle, according to The Diet Channel. But some groups have needs that extend beyond caloric intake and the USDA's criteria for a healthy diet. According to the USDA, people older than 50 need additional sources of vitamin B-12 from foods such as lamb, beef, poultry and eggs. Women who may become pregnant should consume more iron-rich vegetables and foods high in folate, such as spinach and fruits.
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