How do toddlers eat so much?
“Wow that kid can eat! Where do they put it all?” This comment is often made about toddlers, which can make parents concerned that something is wrong with their toddlers eating habits. But it is normal for a healthy toddler, or 12-35 month old, to eat a ton. I’m Dr. Wagner, a pediatrician. A healthy 26lb 12kg 2 year old has calorie needs of about 80kcal/kg/day (about 1000 calories) compared to an 150lb 70kg adult with average calorie needs of about 35kcal/kg/day (about 2000 calories). So the toddler who weighs 20% of the adult eats about 50% of what the adult is eating. If an adult were eating as much as the toddler proportionally, they would need to eat almost 6000kcal/day. Infants actually have the highest calorie needs of all at 90-100kcal/kg/day, but since infants are mostly getting their calories from breast milk or formula, it isn’t as noticeable how much they are eating until they become toddlers who are taking down some serious table food. A child’s calorie needs gradually decrease over time until by about age 9 when kids’ calorie needs are closer to an adult’s. Keep in mind the appropriate weights and calorie ranges for kids and adults vary greatly based on a huge variety of factors, I do NOT recommend tracking a kids’ calories unless a doctor has told you to do so, and a healthy toddler should never be restricted or limited in terms of how much healthy nutritious food they can eat, just using some average numbers to illustrate a point. It is absolutely normal for it to feel like a 2yo is eating proportionally more than their older siblings or than the adults at the table, and for most kids, their pace settles out as they get older.
