Powdered milk has several advantages, namely, it is easy to store and lasts a long time, and has a taste that is generally liked by children. It's no wonder that powdered milk is often the choice of parents compared to packaged liquid milk or even pure cow's milk which is easier to spoil.

However, not all powdered milk products are of high quality and safe for children to consume. In fact, there is powdered milk that only provides "milk taste", but contains very low nutrients. Therefore, parents need to be more selective in choosing powdered milk to be given to their children.

In choosing powdered milk for your child, you need to make sure the powdered milk you choose meets the following criteria:

Children aged 6-10 years need to get a protein intake of 35-40 grams per day, while adolescents need protein as much as 50-70 grams per day. Because protein is one of the important nutrients that children need to support their growth and development.

Protein also functions to increase strength and muscle mass, launch the body's metabolism, maintain bone health, repair damaged body tissues, and maintain endurance.

Therefore, it is important for mothers to ensure that the milk powder chosen is high in protein, so that the child's daily protein needs can be met.

A number of minerals, such as calcium, zinc, and iron, should also be contained in the powdered milk you choose. This is because these nutrients play a major role in the growth and development of children and the function of their organs, and can keep the child's immune system strong in fighting germs and viruses that cause infection. Iron is also needed for the production of red blood cells, so children can avoid anemia.

To get these benefits, every day children are recommended to get 1000-1200 mg of calcium, 5-11 mg of zinc, and 10-11 mg of iron. These nutrients can be met from a variety of foods, including powdered milk.

Children need various types of vitamins to stay healthy and can grow and develop perfectly. Therefore, paying attention to the vitamin content contained in the milk powder that will be selected is very important.

Some of the vitamins that must be contained in powdered milk for children are vitamin A, vitamin B, vitamin C, and vitamin D. The following are the benefits of each of these vitamins:

To produce a sweet taste that children like, powdered milk often uses added sugar. So, you need to be careful about this. The reason is, not a few powdered milk products contain too much sugar, so it is not good for children to consume.

Consuming too much sugar can damage your child's teeth and make them sleep less soundly. Not only that, excessive sugar consumption also increases the risk of children suffering from serious health problems, such as heart disease, diabetes, and high blood pressure.

Children are advised not to consume more than 25 grams of sugar per day. Therefore, when you buy powdered milk, choose milk with low sugar content.

In addition to the criteria above, you must also pay attention to the quality of the powdered milk production itself. Make sure the powdered milk to be given to children has been declared fit for consumption and has a distribution permit from the Food and Drug Supervisory Agency of the Republic of Indonesia (BPOM RI).

Making children consume milk regularly is not always easy. This is because sometimes children can have difficulty eating or tend to be picky eaters.

If your little one doesn't want to consume packaged cow's milk, you can try giving him powdered milk. This is because powdered milk has a slightly different taste to packaged milk, but the nutritional content is almost the same.

Mothers can also process the powdered milk into a variety of interesting dishes, such as pudding or a mixture of juices and smoothies.

The recommended amount of powdered milk consumption for children is 2 times a day. However, to be sure, you can consult a doctor first. The doctor will determine the type and amount of milk consumption that is right for the child according to his needs and overall health condition.