Adolescence and teen years

These days teenagers almost seem to live on junk food. Their active lifestyle and growth spurt will burn off the extra calories , but if the habit continues into adulthood which in all likelihood it may, it can cause problems galore in later years. Adolescence is not just a time of physical development as a result of the hormonal changes, it is also a period of great stress and emotional turmoil. Teenagers feel uncomfortable with their rapidly growing bodies and are unhappy with almost everything about themselves and need constant reassurance regarding their looks. They want to be transformed overnight and be like their most perfect idols. And who are their idols ? Models, Film Stars, VJs, Cricketers , Football players ,Formula one heroes and other sports personalities , sometimes it may even come down to more realistic levels to a senior student or a neighbor. They fail to realise that all of those above mentioned personalities have worked hard for that perfect figure, muscular body and some of those have also made body beautiful into a cult.

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It’s all very well to say that teenagers should eat more fruits, vegetables and whole grains and skip the high fat, high sugar junk food , but how do we make them follow this advise ? and more importantly will they even consider it ?

Anything For A Perfect Figure

This quest for that perfect figure can lead many teenagers especially girls to skip meals and indulge in drastic dieting which can progress into anorexia and bulimia and then malnutrition. Boys on the other hand are usually tempted to use nutritional supplements in the vain hope that they will sprout muscles and look masculine over night.

On the one hand a growing independence and increased participation in social life and generally busy schedules of teenagers make them reject family dietary patterns and opt for foods that are more pleasing to their palate. Which effectively means gorge on Burgers, Pizza, hotdogs, milk shakes, samosas, sandwiches and saying goodbye to simple dhal-rice, rotis and home cooked vegetables. A taste for food high in calories is very difficult to break of and this can prove dangerous in later years when the growth spurt ends and the extra calories start piling up as fat layers. Habits of over eating cultivated during adolescence may ultimately contribute in poor health conditions during later life. Teenagers may appear to eat very little but they make up for quantity by eating high calorie foods especially fat calories . Junk foods typically contain plenty of saturated fats, proteins and sodium and devoid of fibre and essential micro nutrients. Many studies have revealed that teenagers don't get the required daily allowance of Vitamin A, B6, Folate or Folic acid , Riboflavin (which is a type of B vitamin. It is water soluble, which means it is not stored in the body. You must replenish the vitamin every day) , Calcium and iron from their lop sided diets.

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So what is a parent to do in these circumstances ?

The first and the foremost lesson you need to teach your teen aged son or daughter is that they should stop trying to change themselves in their quest for the ideal shape. Most body shapes fall into 3 categories – Ectomorphs ( narrow frames ) , Mesomorphs ( medium frames ) and Endomorphs ( Large frames). No amount of malnutrition is going to change Endomarph into an ectomarph or vice versa .Instead of falling into the body trap advise your teenager to make a healthy body the priority and good looks will follow ! Once they begin to understand and give in ,start taking steps to inculcate healthy eating habits. It may take some concentrated effort to redirect your family’s eating habits and alter your ways of shopping and cooking but it is effort well spent , believe me !

Sit down with your children and discuss how your current diet stacks up. Kids are much smarter than we give them credit for. They may resist change initially with all their might but tend to be more reasonable if you involve them. Let them help you plan menus for the week, For instance. If they insist on having pizza , agree that you can have it perhaps once a week or once in a fortnight and ask them which night they would like to have a pizza dinner. Make up a shopping list and ask them to help you select vegetables, fruits of their choice.

Healthy eating strategies

The more variety your teenager eats the less likely he/she is to run short of important nutrients. It is better to keep a check and see whether your teenager is getting the needful, and the serving size will tell you how much she/he needs to meet the daily requirement. Keep in mind that the more processed a food , like for example: colas, biscuits, pastries – the more likely it is to contain lots of fat, sugar and sodium and the less it is to have precious vitamins ,minerals and fiber.

Present a united front – A shape up nutrition regime will not work if one of the parent is furnishing low fat nutritious food and limiting sweets while the other parent is stuffing the child with chocolates ,fries and ice creams. Remember that kids listen to the drummer who plays the beat they like ! If you want your children to avoid chips and soft drinks don’t bring them into your home. You can’t expect your 15 year old to munch carrot sticks while you are polishing off a bag of lays chips.

Don’t get emotional during meal times – Especially during the first few months after you institute the changes ,remind yourself not to get emotional about meal times. You want your children to think of food mainly as fuel for their bodies and not something they eat to make you happy! Simply serve appropriate sizes of food and let them taste and ask for a second helping if they like it. However, don’t praise them when they do so, nor scold them if they don’t, simply treat it as a normal every day affair that will continue !

Be fat conscious – Try and take out the fat from your daily food as much as possible. There are many day today things that you can do to trim fat from your food. When cooking , steam, broil or bake instead of frying. Similarly, use a small amount of vegetable oil or olive oil instead of butter or ghee. Use non stick pans as far as possible which will bring down oil consumption drastically. Wherever possible cut down on any kind of fat in the form of butter or excess oil in baking recipes and substitute it with fruit sauce or vegetable sauce depending on what is being cooked. Consider using egg whites more often instead of a whole egg . No doubt that Chocolate bars ,ice creams, butter and margarine are fat laden, but there is fat lurking in lot of other foods as well. Other high fat foods include cheese, cream sauces, cream soups, heavy cream and mayonnaise salad dressings , cheese cakes, chips and fries...You don’t have to give up on all these food and it may be a difficult proposition anyway to get your teenager to do so, instead limit them and perhaps seek out lower fat versions like fruit salads with jelly , sorbets, fruit yogurts, fresh fruit milk shakes .

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Let your kid learn self control

Most teenagers love to eat chips and wafers all day long which means that they are consuming large quantities of salt which is extremely bad for the system since it may contribute to cholesterol and high blood pressure later on. It is essential to limit high sodium foods such as pickles, potato chips, bacon, sausages and certain other commercially made snacks ! Make sure that your children learn to respond appropriately to their appetite signals since you want them to eat when they are hungry and to stop eating when they are full. Teach chubby teenagers what foods are best to select for a second serving, otherwise when they are away from home and your restraints they won’t know how to set limits. Children do need some fat in their diet so don’t be over strict and try to cut it out completely , if you do that the chances are that they will indulge in all their favorite foods when they are out with their friends.

Take care while eating out

1. Watch out for all those heavy sauces that sometimes are very hard to detect and if you eat out often it is better to make sure that the food you have ordered does not contain any fatty dressings. At any rate avoid creamy dressings in your salad instead ask for a platter of freshly cut salad vegetables with just salt, pepper and lime juice added to it.

2. Order smaller burgers instead of double burgers and a salad or a side dish that balances out the meal. Bread is less fatty than meat and a sandwich which has both meat and vegetables is a better option.

3. Instead of extra cheese have the burger or pizza topped with tomato, lettuce ,corn and other vegetables. Also go in for a grilled variety of burger rather than having a fried filling.

4. Instead of having aerated drinks  that is loaded with sugar it is better to go in juice, milk shake or even plain water and soad which are less harmful to the system.

5. Remember that the simpler the food , the better it is , and all the extras like sauces, cheese, cram, syrups ,butter, ghee etc; etc; add fat , sodium, sugar and of course loads of calories.

6. Fried foods,  no matter what category they belong to are bad whether it is fish, white meat like chicken or deep fried vegetable patties or  samosas and pakorahs .

7. Make sure that your children come to the dining table for all their meals instead of sitting in front of the TV or the computer and gobbling up food without actually experiencing it or relishing it. In fact try to talk them out of snacking while watching TV or while using the computer, if they must then it has to be some healthy snack not the usual chips ,tacos and fries accompanied with coca cola or other soft drinks.

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Serve a variety of foods 

The best way to pump a balance of nutrients into kids is to serve lots of different kinds of food items. Experiment with less familiar but nutrition packed food and in time your family is bound t like it. Make vegetable burger with soya nuggets and lots of fresh vegetables like beans, carrots, peas and potatoes . And while making a non vegetarian burger use minced chicken and mix in a variety of vegetables like chopped spring onions, peas and carrots . If your children insist on having samosas make the filling using lots of mixed vegetables and potatoes instead of making it with only potatoes. Try to limit ketchup, and chili sauce instead making green chutneys and yogurt dips at home is a healthier option.

When your children want variety like Chinese or Thai food, load the fried rice or any other meat or chicken dish with plenty of fresh vegetables and sea food like shrimps and boneless fish.Normally children love to eat vegetables served with meat and chicken dishes.

Make rotis with whole wheat flour and add a handful of soya bean flour if your teenager is fussing and refusing to drink milk , make the chapati dough using milk instead of water.

Make sure, infact insist that your children eat a healthy and nutritious breakfast before they leave home in the morning. Ideally one must have either eggs, toast, milk, fruits or idli/ dosa/ parathas /upmas with milk and fruits or cereals with milk and fruits and some toast. If they are pressed for time and refuse to eat an elaborate breakfast make sure that they have at least a glass of milk and munch an apple or eat a banana.

Teenagers have a tendency to eat the same kind of food that they like over and over again and turn up their nose at new foods especially when they know that their negative attitude gets a reaction from mum and dad. You don’t lose your temper instead humor them and your best bet is to keep serving small portions of the ‘alien’ food regardless of whether your child is going to sample it or not. There is always the chance that eventually the food may appear not so alien and he or she may try it – even like it and ask for a second helping ! You can never tell with a teenager !

 


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