Healthy Eating for Adolescents

by Caryn Roll, Professional Dietitian

The nutritional needs of adolescents are not much different compared to the typical adult. To achieve vitality, it is important that every Canadian consume a variety of foods as outlined by Canada’s Food Guide. This includes daily servings from the grain, vegetables and fruits, dairy and protein groups. What about other foods such as candy and chips? These foods are acceptable in moderation as long as the adolescent is following a healthy eating pattern.

Canada’s food guide suggests a daily intake of 5-12 servings of grain products, 5-10 servings from the vegetable and fruit group, 2-4 servings of milk products and 2-3 servings of meat and alternatives. This may seem like a lot, but the amount of food an adolescent should consume is based on their height, weight and activity level. Smaller kids eat less and taller or more active teens eat more.

One serving from the grain product group can be a slice of multi-grain bread or ½ a whole-wheat bagel or ½ a cup of high fibre pasta or ½ cup of bran flake cereal. You may have noticed that the foods mentioned are of the whole grain variety and not the white kind. This is because whole grains have health benefits including vitamins, minerals and fibre compared to regular white bread.

Canadian teenagers consume between 40-60% of what is required from the vegetable and fruit group. (Gray-Donald et. al., Food Habits of Canadians, 2000) Half a cup or 1 medium sized fruit or vegetable is one serving but one whole banana or a large carrot is considered 2 servings. Therefore, it is not very hard to eat the required servings per day. Simply include a vegetable or fruit at every meal for the minimum requirement and add snacks to increase your daily intake.

The purpose of the milk product group is for calcium but it is also a protein source. You can get calcium from dairy products such as milk, yogurt and cheese. For those with lactose intolerance, an alternative is calcium and vitamin D enriched soy-based products like soy beverage or soy “cheese”. Adolescents need about 1300mg per day of calcium. This translates into 4 servings of milk products/day or 1 cup of milk, 175ml of plain or frozen yogurt and 50 grams cheese and 1 cup of fortified rice or soy beverage.

The meat and alternative group is for protein. There are 2 types of protein, animal and plant. Animal protein such as eggs, poultry (including chicken and turkey), fish and meat are very common sources. Plant protein such as beans, lentils, split peas and tofu are alternative choices and should be included in a vegetarian diet. Consequently, vegetarianism is growing in popularity especially with the teen population. Incorporating vegetarian recipes, such as lentil soup or kidney bean chilli, into a non-vegetarian diet is a healthy plan. A serving of animal protein is 2-3 ounces and a serving size of plant protein is ½ cup - 1 cup.

To complete a balanced eating plan, drink at least 8 cups of water every day. Avoid soda pops and juices (except vegetable cocktail, which is a purée and counts as a vegetable and fruit choice) as these contain high amounts of sugar.

Finally, excess weight is an issue for many adolescents. Dieting and calorie restriction is never suggested for growing teens. Instead, increased physical activity is recommended. Pick up hockey, inline skating, and even walking instead of taking the bus are good examples of physical activity. A well-balanced eating plan coupled with plenty of exercise is still the best approach to achieve a healthy weight and a healthy lifestyle.