The recommended calorie intake depends on your sex, age, height, weight, lifestyle and activities you are involved in day to day life.
For instance, males are more active than females (or rather are involved in more strenuous work). They also have more lean muscles and higher metabolism. When it comes to age, adults require more calories than teenagers. The same applies to height and weight – a tall, heavy individual will require more calories than someone who is short and thin.
However on average the recommended calorie intake per day is approximately 2500 calories for adult males and around 2000 calories for females. New born children will make do with around 500 calories a day progressing to around 900 calories by the time they are one year old. High fat milk and high calorie foods are recommended for kids of this age. By the time children turn ten, they will need around 1900 calories a day. Remember that they are undergoing rapid growth and development and thus have high BMR.
An average teenage male requires the highest amount of calories as teenagers are most active at this stage not to mention they are still growing up. While their female counterparts will require around 2100 daily calories, males will need an amazing 2700 calories a day.
This recommended intake of calories also depends on your lifestyle and the type of activities you are involved in. If you are very active in sports or are involved in strenuous industrial work then more calories will be needed to make up for the huge energy requirements. If you do normal office work, then you won’t need any extra calories.
A healthy and balanced diet is recommended especially if you are dealing with foods naturally high in calories such as fats and carbohydrates. Ensure that you keep the fat content around 25 to 30 percent of the total calories you consume in a day. Ensuring that you consume the right amount of fat and carbohydrates is the key to staying healthy.