Calcium is essential to a healthy diet and bone development, but most children and teenager are not getting enough

You can play a critical role in making sure tweens* and teens get 1,300 mg of calcium every day—at least 3 cups of low-fat or fat-free milk, plus other calcium-rich foods—to build strong bones for life.

Calcium is essential to overall health and bone development, but most children and teenagers are not getting enough. In fact, fewer than one in 10 girls and just more than one in four boys ages 9 to 13 are at or above their adequate intake of calcium.

You can help children achieve lifelong bone health by talking to parents and young people about the importance of calcium consumption, especially during ages 11 to 15, a time of critical bone growth. Children and teenagers can get most of their daily calcium from 3 cups of low-fat or fat-free milk (900 mg), but they also need additional servings of calcium-rich foods to get the 1,300 mg of calcium necessary for optimal bone development.

Research suggests many parents don't know that children and teenagers need almost twice as much calcium as children younger than age 9. To read the entire fact sheet from the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development follow this link: http://aahf.info/pdf/youth_articles/NICHD_MM_HC_FS.pdf 

If this is an area of training that sounds interesting, you should consider continuing your education with advanced training to safely and effectively work with the youth of all ages and fitness levels. An excellent home-study CEC course that is recognized by all major certification organizations in the US and Canada is:

JrFit: Youth Fitness Specialty Certification

This in depth program (worth 19-24 CECs) will teach already certified and experienced personal trainers, lifestyle coaches, and athletic trainers to safely and effectively train youth ages 7-17.

American Academy of Health and Fitness: Fitness Specialty Certifications and Continuing Education Home Study Courses for Health and Fitness Professionals