Adolescence - This is the second after the infancy period of rapid growth and development of the child. This sudden growth spurt and other changes associated with hormonal, cognitive and emotional changes that make adolescents are particularly vulnerable in this period of his life.
At this time, there is an increased demand for calories and nutrients due to a sharp increase in growth and development in a short period of time. In the same period, significantly changing lifestyles, and with it the eating habits of adolescents. They feel older and independent, and begin at its discretion, select the dishes and products, expanding, or vice versa, narrowing the options for your diet healthy.
Adolescence can be divided into three stages. Early adolescence (11-12 years) is characterized by the onset of puberty and increased cognitive development. Middle adolescence (13-15 years) is characterized by an increase in the desire for independence and experimentation in relationships with others. Late adolescence - youth (16 - 21) - the time to make important decisions in matters of finding one's place in society and acquisition of profession.
Poor, unbalanced diet at any of these stages may cause far-reaching consequences in the cognitive development of adolescents, resulting in decreased learning ability, poor concentration, and ultimately to a violation of academic achievement. But most importantly - an unbalanced diet will lead to ill health.
Possible effects of malnutrition
Inadequate dietary habits and continually violate the rights of a healthy diet to increase rice and frequency of chronic diseases among adolescents. A major concern is the increase in obesity and obesity-related diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease. And, for example, a diet with insufficient intake of iron increases the frequency of iron deficiency anemia.
A typical teen diet includes sodas, pizza, potato chips and similar products, and deficient in fruits, vegetables and whole grain foods. Malnutrition leads to the fact that the growing organism is saturated with essential nutrients and this can cause the following problems:
Persistent dizziness;
Fatigue;
A weakened immune system;
Tooth decay;
Joint problems;
The fragility of the bones, a high risk of fractures;
Stunting;
Girls - menstrual irregularities.
We want to appeal to young people and to talk about what should be the proper nutrition to maintain health and to become a full-fledged adult.
General advice on nutrition
Dear teenager! Healthy eating means that you care about getting the right balance of nutrients that your body needs every day. A balanced diet includes:
Fruits and vegetables;
Fat or low-fat milk and milk products;
Lean meat, poultry, fish, beans, eggs and nuts;
Whole grain foods.
Furthermore, this diet is low in saturated and trans fats, cholesterol, sugar and salt. What else you need to your body?
Calcium
Calcium helps to strengthen bones and teeth. This material is very important as getting enough calcium now, you can significantly reduce the risk of bone fractures in the future. And the calcium effect on the contraction and relaxation of muscles, is involved in blood clotting, it helps the body resist stress and perform many other useful functions.
What foods are rich in calcium? It is milk and dairy products, hard cheese, cabbage, beans, various nuts and seeds, rice, lentils, broccoli.
Protein
Proteins are used to "assembly" and "repair" tissues such as muscles and the viscera. If the protein is missing, the muscles become weak and flabby. The diet of a teenager, containing sufficient amounts of protein, will help him to get stronger and maintain a high level of energy. If someone has to get rid of excess fat and also strengthen the muscles, the diet of a person have to include protein foods.
What are the products you can get protein? This is lean meat, poultry, fish, beans, nuts, eggs, tofu. Here it is possible to include seafood (lobster, squid, mussels, shrimp, crabs); milk with any fat percentage, bold, cottage cheese, yogurt and yogurt.
What are fats
Fat is also an important nutrient. It helps the body grow and develop adolescent maintains healthy skin and hair and is a source of energy. But bear in mind that not all fats are beneficial. Fat intake is necessary to limit from 25 to 35 percent of total calories each day.
Unsaturated fats can be a part of a healthy diet, but only as long as you do not use them too much (after all, they carry with them too many calories). The best sources of fat for the body:
Nuts: walnuts, almonds, peanuts, cashews and others.
Saturated fats, unlike unsaturated, can "clog" the artery and increase the risk of cardiovascular diseases. Saturated fat is contained mainly in animal products and in some of the oils:
Butter;
Whole milk;
Cheese;
Fat meat;
Coconut oil and palm oil.
Trans fats are particularly harmful to health, especially for the heart. Trans fats are most often found in:
Bakery products, such as biscuits, scones, muffins, donuts;
Dry snacks, such as crackers and potato chips;
Margarine;
Fried foods.
Recharge your body with iron
For teenage boys really need iron to support their rapid growth, because most boys double their lean body mass between the ages of ten and seventeen. And for teenage girls iron it is not only important to maintain growth, but also to compensate for blood loss during menstruation. To obtain iron, use the following products:
Fish and seafood;
Lean beef;
Cooked beans: peas, beans, beans;
Buckwheat;
White cabbage:
Potatoes boiled in their jackets;
Spinach.
Whole grains
Cereal products help us to get more energy. The whole grain foods - such as whole wheat bread, brown rice, oatmeal, - usually a lot more nutrients than in the products of the processed grain. In addition, they give a greater feeling of fullness with fewer, consumption. Therefore, it is very true, if in the diet of adolescents whole grains will occupy a worthy place.
How to organize diet
And you, and the older members of your family probably quite a busy schedule of employment, which could cause problems in a healthy diet. Therefore, it would be good if you listened to our recommendations.
Start your day with breakfast
Did you know that eaten breakfast will help you learn better in school? After breakfast, you can increase your attention and memory, you will have more energy and you will feel not so irritable and restless. Breakfast, which is part of a healthy diet of adolescents will help you maintain a proper weight now and in the future.
Be sure to dine!
Eat if you are in school or have dinner at home, but you should have dinner anyway. This meal should cover one-third of food requirements for the day. If you intercept instead of lunch chips, cookies or candy, you just get a lot of calories, but not so many nutrients. If you really did not have time for lunch, the best snack healthy food - a sandwich of wholemeal bread, fruit, nonfat yogurt, nut mixture.
Dine with family
For many teenagers meal consists of eating on the run, and dinner snack replaces all sorts of things in front of TV. Try to get rid of the habit of continually something to chew the whole evening, and sit down for dinner with his family. Can you believe it or not, but just so you will have a much higher chance of getting more fruits, vegetables and other foods containing vitamins and minerals that your body needs so much.
In addition, the joint family dinner will help you relax and recover after a busy day. You'll be able to communicate with people in the household, to tell them how was your day, listen to what interesting happened today with them.
How to eat, so as not to get better?
Perhaps every teenage girl worried about how she maintain a normal weight and do not get better, even if her figure everything is in order. But here, we can help and give recommendations.
Restrict fast food
Like many other young people, you too can love to drop a pizza and other fast food places. If so, you probably use a lot of extra calories, sugar and fat. Do you know that one serving of a hamburger, french fries, and sweetened cola contains more calories, fat and sugar than many other things that you could eat in a day? Think about it!
Reconsider their attitude to drinks
Sweetened soft drinks and other carbonated beverages is now almost completely replaced milk and water, and children and adults. But these drinks are more like dessert than usual drink, because they contain very high amounts of sugar and calories. In fact, carbonated soft drinks contribute to obesity in children and adolescents. Consider this, and try to stick to water and bold or skim milk.
Watch how much you eat
Research scientists have shown that a person eats more than usual, if you give him too big a portion of food. How can you control how much you eat? Take advantage of our tips:
Do not eat in front of TV. It is easy to lose track of fuel, if you are keen on watching;
Eat slowly so your brain had time to get the message that the stomach is already full;
Do not skip meals. This can lead to what you eat high-calorie food over during the next meal.
