Proper nutrition for adolescents: foundations and goals

Maintaining a healthy weight and eating a balanced diet are important for health.

In addition to lowering the risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and high blood pressure, it can also lower the risk of many different cancers.

A steady weight loss of 1 to 2 pounds per week is recommended for the most effective long-term weight management.

Healthy eating habits should start early on in life and be maintained throughout adolescence.

However, not all teenagers will eat healthy due to peer pressure, stress from schoolwork or social situations, or an inability to cook. This blog provides some ti

Adequate Nutrition

In addition to weight loss, proper nutrition helps in reducing the risk of chronic disease.

Dr. Tony Scott is a pediatric endocrinologist who regularly sees patients with this problem.

“Adolescents are physically more active than the average child. They are also going to be consuming more calories. Yet there is very little nutrition guidance for the child.

” According to Dr. Scott, children need 6-8 servings of fruits and veggies per day, two servings of complex carbohydrates, including whole grains, and two servings of lean protein. There are often times that adolescents will go for energy drinks and other unhealthy foods when they are hungry.

Healthy Weight Control

Eat breakfast each day Eating breakfast each day will help to kick-start the day, and has been shown to be effective in helping to reduce weight and improve satiety.

It also helps to get rid of hunger between meals and can help to promote a healthier metabolic balance.

The usual meal consists of bread, eggs, or sausages with fruit and low-fat milk. This is a great meal for teens to have for breakfast as it’s not too fattening, easy to prepare, and nutritious. Keeps blood sugar levels stable A high proportion of overweight teens (74%) report that they sometimes eat their meals to keep their blood sugar levels stable, due to emotional reasons (51%) and lack of time (41%).

Studies have shown that eating food at the right time of day is key to ensuring a healthy blood glucose level.

Helping Your Child with Eating Habits

Healthy Eating Habits for Children Many adolescents are plagued with eating habits that are difficult to break.

These may include unhealthy snacking, not drinking enough water, or eating large portions.

Additionally, some teenagers tend to become very rigid with their diets, avoiding all types of food in fear of becoming overweight.

A healthy eating habit in children starts with choosing high-quality foods as opposed to low-quality foods.

For example, sugary drinks are highly processed, highly caloric, and are extremely bad for your health.

Making these and other types of foods a part of your child’s regular diet can greatly reduce your child’s risk of obesity.

Other examples of unhealthy foods are foods high in fat and oils, low-fiber bread and cereals, and flavored water drinks.

Conclusion

With obesity rates on the rise, it is essential to identify the potential risks that increase the risk of obesity.

For most, if not all, teenagers, eating a balanced diet and maintaining a healthy weight can reduce the risk of developing type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and even some cancers.

In addition, maintaining a healthy weight through a healthy diet and regular physical activity will also provide many other benefits in terms of energy, weight management, and quality of life.

Although increasing daily physical activity levels may seem difficult for teens due to a variety of factors, such as lack of time or lack of interest, research is showing that this form of exercise can actually be enjoyable, have many health benefits, and be more sustainable in the long term.