Nutrition for teenagers
Good nutrition is especially important during adolescence and the teenage years of growth, development, and physical maturation. With their active lifestyles and growing bodies, adolescents need advanced levels of antioxidants, vitamins, minerals and other nutrients to achieve and maintain optimal health.
Teenagers' busy lifestyles almost inevitably lead to irregular eating habits, missing meals and bingeing on junk food. Which may cause serious dietary deficiencies. The fast food teenagers love to eat tends to be high in calories, fat and sodium, but low in fibre, vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Also, because adolescents receive more peer pressure than any other age group, most boys want to weigh more, and almost all girls want to weigh less. Teenagers need to follow a balanced nutritional plan that includes vitamin and mineral supplementation. Combined with balanced meals, supplementation can provide virtually all the nutrients needed during adolescence and young adulthood, setting the stage for lifelong health.
Antioxidants
An important, and sometimes primary, function of certain vitamins and minerals, such as vitamin E and selenium, is to protect cells from free-radical damage. The body produces antioxidants to counteract this damage, but today's environmental pollutants can create more free radicals than the active teenage body can handle. This situation can be compounded for young athletes, whose increased use of oxygen can further increase oxidative stress. Antioxidants for teenagers should include olive fruit and oil, rutin, quercetin, hesperidin, grape seed extract, green tea extract, turmeric extract, lutein and lycopene.
Vitamins
Teenagers need balanced amounts of essential vitamins and cofactors. Vitamin A, converted from beta-carotene, is important for vision and healthy skin. Adolescents need B vitamins in advanced amounts to meet the extra demands of growth, energy metabolism, and muscle tissue development. Vitamin D is essential for uptake and utilisation of calcium and additionally vitamins A and C are often necessary to compensate for erratic eating habits.
Minerals
Teenagers of course also need an ideal balance of essential minerals in bioavailable forms. Copper is important in maintaining a healthy immune system. The addition of copper to cell cultures of human white blood cells has been shown to enhance the differentiation and development into mature immune cells. Calcium assimilation during the developing years is essential for bone health later in life.
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