Although there is no magic formula for calculating your child's energy needs, guidelines exist to help you estimate your child's daily calorie needs. RDAs, or recommended dietary allowances, were established by the Institute of Medicine to help estimate minimum nutrient needs, but in the mid-1990s, dietary reference intakes, or DRIs replaced the RDAs in the United States. However, energy guidelines for children and adults provided by the Institute of Medicine are calculated using EER, or estimated energy requirements, equations.
Background
The USDA provides estimates of calorie needs for children based on the Institute of Medicine EER equations. These estimates are based on your child's age, gender and activity level. Growth charts and BMI calculators for children are available on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website to help gauge if your child's body weight is in a healthy range based on height.
Toddlers
The USDA calorie requirements for children ages 2 to 3 are the same for both male and female children, but vary based on activity level. Sedentary toddlers require about 1,000 to 1,200 calories per day, while moderately active and active toddlers require between 1,000 to 1,400 calories on a daily basis.
School-Aged Children
Based on USDA guidelines, girls ages 4 to 8 require about 1,200 to 1,800 calories per day and boys ages 4 to 8 require about 1,200 to 2,000 calories per day depending on their activity levels. Girls ages 9 to 13 require between 1,400 and 2,200 calories and boys ages 9 to 13 require about 1,600 to 2,600 calories per day depending on activity levels.
Teenagers
The USDA estimates that teenage girls ages 14 to 18 require between 1,800 and 2,400 calories per day, while teenage boys ages 14 to 18 require between 2,000 to 3,200 calories on a daily basis. Sedentary girls in this age category require about 1,800 calories, moderately active girls require about 2,000 calories and active teenage girls require about 2,400 calories per day. Sedentary boys in this age group require about 2,000 to 2,400 calories, moderately active boys require about 2,400 to 2,800 calories and active teenage boys require about 2,800 to 3,200 calories per day.
AMDRs
Although calorie requirements for children are estimated using EERs, the Institute of Medicine provides AMDRs, or acceptable macronutrient distribution ranges, for macronutrients such as carbohydrates protein and fat. AMDRs for children ages 1 to 19 for carbohydrates are 45 to 65 percent of their daily calorie intake. Protein AMDRs are 5 to 20 percent for children ages 1 to 3 and 10 to 30 percent of daily calories for children ages 4 to 18. AMDRs for fat are 30 to 40 percent for children ages 1 to 3 and 25 to 35 percent for children ages 4 to 18.
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