Child Care Nutritional Articles

calcium for toddlers

Calcium is known to be essential for the development of bones and teeth but it is also very important for blood clotting, muscle contraction and the transmission of messages along the nerves of the body.

The best sources of dietary calcium are milk and dairy products. Infants and toddlers will have an increased risk of osteoporosis in later life if they have a diet low in calcium.

Breast-milk or a recognised infant formula should be the principal fluid for infants under the age of 12 months. After eight or nine months, however, milk foods such as cheese, milk desserts, custard and yoghurts can be introduced.

The energy content of milk is as important as the calcium content for children. If a child doesn’t enjoy drinking milk then adding it into food may be a good way to ‘sneak’ it into a fussy diet - add milk powder in mashed potato to enrich it or stir milk powder into blended fruit or smoothies (suitable for children 12 months and older). The calcium in plant foods is not as bioavailable as that in cows’ milk. Although, alternatives are necessary for those children who have lactose intolerance or diagnosed milk allergy.

Vegetarian toddlers who do not consume milk or dairy products should drink calcium-fortified soy-milk, tofu, beans and nut pastes.

Unmodified liquid cow’s milk (homogenised milk in the bottle or carton) is not a suitable substitute for breast-milk or formula for babies under 12 months because it has:

• too much salt,
• too much protein and,
• is a very poor source of iron (early introduction is linked to the development of iron deficiency).

The early introduction of unmodified cow’s milk may lead to the development of allergies in those with a strong family history of allergy. The structure of milk protein is made less allergenic by heat processing that occurs in the formulation of formulas and some milk foods.

Recommended Dietary Intake (RDI) for calcium

• Calcium (mg/day)
  Breastfed infants 300
  Bottlefed infants 500
  Infants (7-12 months) 550
  Children (1-2 years) 700
  Children (3-5 years) 800
  

Reduced fat milk is not recommended for infants or toddlers under the age of two because it is too low in energy, but children can benefit from the higher calcium content of these lower fat milks after the age of two years.

Enriched Calcium Menu for children aged 2-5 years

enrich breakfast by:

• Blue or lite blue milk on cereals such as wheat biscuits or ½ cup porridge
• Grilled cheese on Vegemite/Marmite wholemeal toast fingers
• 1 cup yoghurt, milk and fruit smoothie plus 1 slice wholemeal toast with almond butter (available at most supermarkets)

enrich lunch or dinner by:

• cheese sauce over vegetables
• make cheese wholemeal bread club sandwiches
• Mash salmon (a good calcium source) into mashed potato to make fishcakes and serve with cooked broccoli (a good calcium source) then have instant pudding for dessert
• Baked beans (a good calcium source) into cooked minced meat and pasta followed by ice-cream for dessert
• Macaroni cheese then fruit crumble and custard for dessert

(The above article was prepared by - Nikki Hart, NZ Registered Dietitian)

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