Are Hemp Seeds Safe for Kids?
Hello everyone! It’s Wednesday and I hope you guys are excited because starting this week, Wednesdays I will be answering your questions. These are questions that have been either emailed to me or asked in the comment section of other article. Today, I thought I’d take some time to answer a question that has come up to me many times. Are hemp seeds safe for kids?
First, as much as I sometimes find it strange that people don’t quite understand exactly what hemp is, I want to set aside any embarassment for anyone afraid to ask and say to you that it’s not a silly question. Unless you fully understand what hemp is, this is a question you may not have the answer to yet. Besides…these are our kids right? We only want the best for them.
With that being said, you have nothing to worry about when it comes to hemp seeds or hemp hearts (the shelled version of hemp seeds) and your kids. Hemp seeds absolutely are safe for children and really are no different than giving them pumpkin seeds, sunflower seeds or flax seeds. Of course as with any food, you want to keep an eye on serving size and realize they should be adjusted for a smaller body. No, not because of any THC levels…there aren’t any remember. Instead, you want to adjust based on the daily recommended values of each nutrient you are providing to your child.
For an example, according to the CDC, as an adult woman, the recommended daily allowance for protein is 46 grams per day. My daughter on the other hand, needs just 13 grams of protein each day. Since a single serving of 3 tablespoons of hemp hearts contains 10 grams of protein, you can see you won’t need as much for a child to meet their daily allowance.
You would want to adjust children’s intake considerably less taking into account the other protein based foods you are giving your child. My own child, who is now 18 months old I have a really hard time getting to eat any meat. On days when this happens and meet is off the list, I increase her intake of hemp seed and feel better knowing she is still getting her recommended daily allowance of protein.
Hemp seeds are grown naturally with no pesticides or herbacides. They are nature’s superfood and contain all 20 amino acids making it the perfect food to give your child for a healthy and well balanced diet. There are so many nutritional benefits to giving your child hemp seed as part of their regular diet that I couldn’t list them all here. Just read the full details here.
Why You Should Add Hemp Seeds to your Child’s Diet
Now that you know hemp seeds are completely safe for children, really no different than eating any other seed in nature, let’s talk about why you should add them to your children’s diet.
- Hemp seeds contain the perfect ratio of Omega-6 to Omega-3 EFA’s. For many children, including hemp seeds could be the healthiest thing you could do for them.
- Hemp seeds are gluten free and is a great solution for children who have sensitivities to gluten products.
- Hemp seeds are 100% natural and easily digestible. That means no issues for those who have intolerances to dairy products (check out hemp milk) or nuts.
- Unlike other seeds, hemp seeds actually taste good! That means kids will actually want to eat them and giving them good nutrition won’t be a constant battle.
- Hemp seeds are high in protein and if you have small children who don’t like to eat meat or if your child is on a vegan diet, hemp seeds are a great way to get a fantastic amount of protein into their diet.
- Hemp seeds are a great source of iron that children need to help with natural growth and development.
Hemp Seed Serving Ideas for Children
My own daugther will eat the hemp hearts right out of the bag, but we’ve also come to find plenty of other ways that are kid friendly. Here are a few of my family’s favorite ways to eat hemp seeds.
If you’re just getting started with hemp, I recommend getting a starter pack from Manitoba Harvest to get all 3 hemp products (hemp hearts, hemp oil and hemp protein powder). Trust me, you will love all 3 and this is a great and inexpensive way to try all 3.
- Toasted hemp seeds are a favorite in my house. You can grab some awesome toasted hemp seeds from Hippie Butter (check their product listings).
- Spread some almond butter or peanut butter on a banana and press the butter side down into a plate of hemp seed until covered. (This is my daughters favorite snack!)
- Smoothies are a great breakfast and mixing in hemp hearts into your smoothies is loved by kids…who doesn’t love smoothies?
- On days when oatmeal is on the menu for breakfast, sprinkle some hemp hearts into your childs oatmeal for a kick of protein to start their day.
- If your child eats granola for a snack, you can easily mix in some hemp hearts or toasted hemp seeds into the granola mix.
Give your child a healthy diet by including hemp seed in their diet. It’s a family affair! Get your hemp hearts here from Manitoba Harvest.
Do your kids love hemp seeds? Let me know below!
Good information here, thank you! Seems I’m hearing more and more about hemp these days!
I think you’re going to be seeing even more Kristen. It’s becoming more and more available and recommended every day!
This is a very interesting article! I never even thought about adding hemp seeds to mine and my three year old sons diet until now. Very informative and I love your writing style! Great read!
Thank you Ellen! Your 3 year old will love it I promise. My little monkey absolutely loves them and because she’s not great about eating meat I used to worry about her weight and protein levels, but trust me she is a chunky little thing and gets all the nutrition she needs from fruits, vegetables and hemp!
This is good to know, Misty! I’m glad to have the whole issue so clearly laid out for me! I’ll be looking to incorporate hemp seeds into our diet.
Wonderful Amy! be sure to come back and let me know how you like them.
Good to know that Hemp seeds are safe for children 🙂 I learn something new every time I read your posts, Misty, thank you 🙂
So glad to hear it Joan! That’s my whole goal with this website, spread the awareness and truth about hemp seed. It’s working!
Best blog post about hemp seeds I’ve seen in a really long time. Keep up the great work ***** five star rating!
Thank you Hippie Butter! That’s so nice of you to say. 🙂 I really hope people sit up and listen because kids can really benefit from including hemp seeds into their diets.
My family loves your products by the way, so far from what we’ve tried. We’ll be ordering more this weekend when we can sit down and decide on what.
Great picture of your daughter, what a cutie and smart too to like the flavor of hemp seeds. Seriously they’re great for everyone.
Thank you Marilyn! I was wondering if anyone would guess who the little monkey was at the top of the page. I’m doing a video this weekend on a new hemp seed recipe and I’m going to try and get her to do the video with me…if I can keep her from eating everything. lol
It’s good to see someone thniking it through.
I just ordered the Manitobe hemp milk from Amazon. 🙂 I want to try that first and then I’ll probably get the hemp seeds next. 🙂
I don’t have children living at home anymore, but I want to incorporate protein into my new diet plan since I plan on eating tons of fruit and veggies and shying away from meat as much as I can.
Thanks for this post, Misty and your daughter is such a cutie! She must take after her mommy in the looks department! 🙂
What flavor did you get Bonnie? or did you go with Original? Over the last few weeks I’ve completely cut out all milk from all of my cooking. Anytime a recipe calls for milk, I’m using the plain original milk and it’s awesome. My husband has seen the most benefit due to his lactose issues. Of course he’s now eating it with his cereal too. Let me know what you think of it. Just be careful the first time you drink it…get the thought of “milk” out of your head or it will really mess with your head. lol It’s not the same taste all all. It’s more vanilla and nutty.
Ahh yes, this was a very interesting article!
🙂
These are so much healthier than anything my kids want to eat these days. They are past the age where I can make them eat anything but before the age where they realize it’s sensible to and worth it to have a healthy diet. If I can get them to eat apples rather than cookies it feels like a victory just now 🙂 But thought this question was very well answered for anyone who is wondering the same thing. Love your daughter in that picture too by the way 🙂
I hear ya. Getting kids to eat healthy is frustrating to say the least. I have 3 older children…all of whom don’t listen to my words of wisdom for eating anymore since they are nearly adults.. Most people don’t know this, but I have a 14 year gap between my 18 month old and my next to youngest child. When my other 3 were young, I really didn’t know any better on healthy eating habits and while I tried to get them eat healthy, I definitely wasn’t as aggressive as I am now. I also wasn’t eating so healthy myself back then. I guess it’s why I tend to be more of a healthy eater now and really instill those values in her while she’s still so very young. I hope it sticks with her!
Really finding these blog posts interesting! Love it!
Thank you Rachel. So glad you are enjoying it and really happy you’re reading and commenting with us. Nice to meet ya!
What a cute picture – she is adorable.
Could you add Hemp seeds directly to a salad or would you have to do some prep work first?
You definitely could. They will be crunchier of course, but lots of people like them. I would recommend toasting them if you’re gonna leave the shells on them. They are fantastic that way. I personally prefer to do hemp hearts (the shelled version) on my salads. Honestly I put them on everything…oatmeal, toast, yogurt, in tomato soup, on bananas, in salads, smoothies, etc.
The pic made me smile, what a cutie! Great info as always Misty.
Thank you Jan…I think she’s pretty cute too 😉
Misty,
This is a great article that’s full of extremely helpful information! I’ve learned so much about hemp and will be adding it to my diet in the future.
Thanks for sharing this! BTW, I love the new website! 🙂
Thank you Cynthia! It’s a labor of love for sure but I’ve had so much fun sharing the knowledge I’ve gained from learning and use hemp based products.
what a safe dosage of hemp oil to a boy 9 years old
Hemp oil from nuativa that contain CBD not the THC
Any one can advise
My son is autistic
Hi misty, my family is vegan an we just love hemp hearts my kids like it mixed with pb2 and chocolate powder! Great article! Love the little girl so pretty!
My 11 year old daughter has just been diagnosed with add and iam ceriouse if this may help her
Is hemp seeds good for increasing breastmilk?is 46gm protein(12 table spoon) enough for lactating mother?
Hi Maya…so sorry I’m getting back to you so late on your question. I somehow missed this question! You may have already found the answer to your question, but for others reading the answer is YES! I love this question because I am a supporter of breastfeeding and I hope a mom who’s struggling with this finds this answer and takes action. So here’s the scoop…
If you’ve done any research on this topic you may have heard the term galactagogue. Galactagogues are any food (or drug) that increases the flow of breastmilk. There’s quite a few natural foods that are considered galactagogues including hemp seeds! Other foods to try are oats, chickpeas, fennel, leafy greens, almonds and even papaya….YUM!
What about hemp oil for kids? What’s the best way to administer hemp oil for kids under 18 years of age, and what is an adequate dosage for my 12 year old? Thanks for your help! I am new at this hemp info, but very very interested in it for medicinal purposes. Thanks!
Emily…the first thing I would ask is what exactly you are trying to treat? Hemp oil has many uses and can be applied in many different ways depending on the intended use. Also, since you say that you are new to hemp info, you should be aware that there is a difference between hemp oil and CBD oil, both of which are derived from the same plant. The information that I would give you would be drastically different depending on which oil you’re talking about. For now I would say to start by visiting https://news.liftcannabis.ca/2016/04/28/the-key-differences-between-hemp-oil-and-cbd-oil/. And please, get back to me with a little more information, as I would love to help you out!
Misty,
I bumped into this after researching Hemp Seed Oil for kids.. My daughter has moderate to severe eczema since birth and she is now 8. I just got my first shipment of organic cold pressed hemp seed oil, but not quite sure how to administer aside from slathering it all over her.. Any help is greatly appreciatd!
Dina
Thanks for this post! Been looking for a better way to add protein into my boy’s diet. Just not sure if it’s safe for him, he’s turning two!