Only 2 percent of children meet Food Guide Pyramid servings recommendations for all five major food groups. Girls ages 14 to 18 have especially low intakes of fruits and dairy products, and this is consistent with their low mean nutrient intakes. Children are heavy consumers of regular or diet soda. Teenage males are especially heavy consumers of soda, with over a third consuming more than three servings a day. Small percentages of children meet the recommendations for intake of total fat, saturated fat, fiber, and sodium.
Young children are most likely to meet the recommendations for sodium and fiber.
Black children are very unlikely to meet recommendations for total fat, saturated fat, and sodium intake. Children s diets are high in added sugars. Compared with lunch and 24-hour intake, breakfast tends to be substantially higher in nutrient density for vitamins and minerals . Breakfast contributes a higher percentage of essential nutrients relative to its energy contribution than do lunch and other meals during the day. Furthermore, children s intakes of fat, saturated fat, and sodium are closer to being in line with dietary recommendations at breakfast than at other meals during the day.