Diet Plan for the Young

Feeding your children healthy foods may seem hard when all they want is a salty snack or sugary dessert. But children need a diet rich in fruit, veggies, whole grains and dairy products. As a parent, the stakes are high. According to the government's Dietary Guidelines for Americans, a poor diet and lack of exercise are the two main reasons people become overweight or obese.

Calorie Requirements

The number of calories your child requires varies with age. According to the American Heart Association, children aged 1 and under need 900 calories per day; toddlers need a bit more---about 1,000 calories per day. Between the ages of 4 and 18, the calorie recommendations for boys and girls differ. Girls aged 4 to 8 require 1,200 calories, girls aged 9 to 13 need 1,600 calories, and older teens need 1,800 calories. Young boys aged 4 to 8 need 1,400 daily calories, boys aged 9 to 13 need 1,800, while growing teen boys require about 2,200 calories.

Important Nutrients

The Dietary Guidelines for Americans specifically recommend children aged 2 and older eat multiple servings of whole grains and dairy products. Try to serve your children three ounces of whole grains every day, found in whole-grain breads, breakfast cereals and pastas. Growing kids between the ages of 2 and 8 also need two cups of low-fat or non-fat dairy products every day; children 9 and over need a total of three cups. Low-fat yogurt, cheese or milk can satisfy this requirement.

Essential Vitamins and Minerals

Baylor College of Medicine draws special attention to children's requirements for calcium, vitamin C and iron. For example, while adults over 18 need 1,000 mg of calcium daily, pre-teens and teens need 1,300 mg. Similarly, while adults need 60 mg of vitamin C, teenage girls need 65 mg and teenage boys require 75 mg. Your school-aged child needs more iron than you might think. While toddlers need 7 mg daily, kids 4 to 8 need a boost up to 10 mg. Serve up low-fat yogurt and cheese for calcium, strawberries and oranges for vitamin C, and tuna or lean meat for iron.

Fat Intake

It's important to monitor your child's intake of fat. The American Heart Association recommends 30 to 35 percent of your toddler's calories come from fat. From ages 4 to 18, that percentage should be between 25 and 35. The AHA also notes that most of these fats should come not from saturated fats or trans fats --- such as those found in chips, cakes and cookies --- but from healthier fats such as the kind found in fish, nuts and vegetable oils such as olive oil.

Diet and Exercise

Feeding your children healthy foods isn't enough to ensure overall health. Both the Dietary Guidelines and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention emphasize the need for daily exercise. According to the CDC, children need an hour a day of physical activity. This should include a mixture of aerobic activities such as biking or swimming, muscle strengthening activities such as gymnastics or climbing, and bone strengthening activities such as jumping rope.