It’s easy to sympathize with today’s youth when it comes to knowing what to eat for optimal health.
They’re growing up in the middle of a nutrition revolution, where the recommended guidelines are constantly changing. Ongoing research is revealing serious flaws in the established nutrition education that was previously taught.
Teens today have become more knowledgeable about nutrition facts, but also more strongly influenced by nutrition fads and fallacies that dominate popular media.
Somewhere in the middle of all of the extreme nutrition programs, diets and supplements, there lies a safe and healthy fuelling strategy that our teens can trust.
Regular eating is essential, and a typical school day should give the structure necessary to maintain healthy meal timing. Consuming small, healthy meals at roughly 8 a.m., noon, 3:30 p.m., 6:30 p.m. and before bed at around 9:30-10 p.m. works well for maintaining relatively stable blood sugar levels.
Including some quality protein, fats and complex carbohydrates at each meal should provide constant energy and support a healthy body weight. The regular protein will increase the opportunity for cellular growth and recovery.
Teens should try to drink lots of water to support their bodies in the digestion and absorption of their food. And it may seem obvious, but it’s important to stay away from processed convenience foods, high-sugar beverages including fruit juice, and snacks that have little to no nutritional value, like chips and candy bars.
Rob Williams of Exceed Athletic Performance is a kinesiologist and posture specialist in downtown Vancouver. His website is exceedathletic.com. Look for his Body by Rob columns every Wednesday in Live it! and his tips on performance sport conditioning at provincesports.com/academy.
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