I had a dream that teenagers were following my site and getting really skinny. And, my dreams are many times a clue to what’s happening in real life.
So, I felt like I should write a post especially for teens about diet. Now, this is the right place to come to if you are a teen interested in being healthy and skinny. In America, if you are at your ideal weight, you are considered really thin.
As a growing teen, you need to know about proper nutrition. Here is a chart that is recommended by over 5,000 medical doctors, researchers, scientists, nurses, and registered dietitians that will help you to get all you need for good health.
It includes all the protein, calories, vitamins, and minerals that you need in one day. Your worried parents will appreciate this.
Daily Meal Planning for Children and Teens
1 to 4 Years Old 5 to 6 Years Old 7 to 12 Years Old 13 to 19 Years Old Whole Grains, Breads, Cereals 4 servings 6 servings 7 servings 10 servings Dark Green and Other Vegetables
2 to 4 tbsp dark green vegetables 1/4 to 1/2 cup other vegetables 1/4 cup dark green vegetables 1/4 to 1/2 cup other vegetables 1 serving dark green vegetables 3 servings other vegetables 1-2 servings dark green vegetables 3 servings other vegetables Legumes, Nuts, Seeds, and Non-Dairy Milks
1/4 to 1/2 cup legumes 3 servings breastmilk, formula, or nondairy milk 1/2 to 1 cup legumes 3 servings soymilk or other nondairy milk 2 servings legumes 3 servings soymilk or other nondairy milk 3 servings legumes 2 to 3 servings soymilk or other nondairy milk Fruits
3/4 to 1 and 1/2 cups 1 to 2 cups 3 servings 4 servings Be sure to include a source of vitamin B12, such as any typical children’s multivitamin or vitamin-fortified cereals or soymilk. Food Groups
- Whole grains include breads, hot and cold cereals, pasta, cooked grains such as rice and barley, and crackers.
- One serving equals 1/2 cup of pasta, grains, or cooked cereal, 3/4 to 1 cup of ready-to-eat cereal, 1/2 bun or bagel, or 1 slice of bread.
- “Dark green vegetables” include broccoli, kale, spinach, collards, turnip, mustard and beet greens, bok choy, and Swiss chard.
- “Other vegetables” refers to all other vegetables, fresh or frozen, raw or cooked.
- One serving of vegetables equals 1/2 cup cooked or 1 cup raw (unless an amount is specified).
- Legumes include any cooked bean such as pinto, kidney, lentils, split peas, navy beans, and chickpeas, as well as soy products such as tofu, veggie burgers, soy “hot dogs” or sandwich slices, and tempeh.
- One serving of legumes equals 1/2 cup of beans, tofu, or other item (unless an amount is specified).
- Non-dairy milks include breast milk and soy formula for infants and toddlers, and rice-, soy-, and other vegetable-based milks for children at least 1 year of age. Choose fortified soymilk, such as Westsoy Plus, Enriched VitaSoy, or Edensoy, whenever possible, or use other fortified vegetable-based milks.
- One serving of non-dairy milk equals 1 cup.
- Nuts include whole or chopped nuts, nut butters, whole seeds, and seed butters.
- One to two servings of nuts may be included in a healthy diet, but they are optional. One serving of nuts or nut butters equals 1 tablespoon.
- Fruits include all fruits, fresh or frozen, raw or cooked, and fruit juices.
- One serving equals 1/2 cup cooked fruit, 1/2 cup fruit juice, 1/4 cup dried fruit, or 1 piece of fruit (unless an amount is specified).
You should probably get some B-12 to supplement for your diet occasionally. B-12 is the byproduct of germs. You could seriously damage your body if you become deficient. However, you only need a very small amount. Here is what Dr. McDougall recommends:
If you follow the McDougall Diet for more than 3 years, or if you are pregnant or nursing, then take a minimum of 5 micrograms of supplemental vitamin B12 each day.
The chart above may seem like a lot of food, but it’s actually not fattening and is high in fiber. Follow your natural appetite and just eat what feels right.
If you are a small female, you may not want that much from the grain group, or you can cut the amount of servings of each group. Just make sure you are not going hungry. Going hungry leads to weight gain in the long run, because when your body sees that you are starving, it will hold onto food and fat a lot more later.
If you are a large football playing male, you may want more grains and beans if following this chart leaves you hungry. Don’t worry too much about following the chart exactly, just eat as much as you need and want.
If you are trying to lose weight, you will want to avoid having the soy milk as it can be high in fat, however it does have omega-3 fatty acids. You may even find better success in avoiding the higher fat, higher calorie avocados, olives, and nuts.
Also, with weight loss efforts, you could cut the grain group in half and only have two fruits a day instead of the four. For weight loss, you’ll need to have whole steamed grains instead of bread, less fruit, no nut butters or soy or things with the high-fat/sugar/refined flour content. Keep the beans to ensure you get the protein requirements, calcium, magnesium, iron, and B-vitamins.
It’s important to get a good foundation now for your future adult life, so you don’t end up with cancer and other diseases. Maybe you hope to have a healthy family. And, it doesn’t have to be hard getting started, just make some simple, yummy sandwiches.
You want to have enough energy to have fun in sports and with your friends or for going to school and working. As you associate with others, you want to feel confident, energetic, happy, and good about how you look. It affects your self-esteem if you think you’re fat and have breakouts on your face. I do have a link all about acne here.
If you follow my weight loss advice, you will become skinny. And, as a growing teen, you might look too skinny. You may need to include some fattening healthy items like olive oil on your popcorn, olives and avocados on your burrito, nuts and dried fruits on your cereal, organic soy milk, and baked spicy tofu squares in your salad.
Hopefully, your friends will be supportive when you’re trying to eat right. Just do your best, and don’t beat yourself up if you slip. Most likely, they will be jealous of your ideal weight, healthy snacks, clear face, and new confidence.
Dairy products and animal flesh are high in fat and can bring on feelings of depression. There is a cell memory transfer that occurs when animals that have suffered and been mistreated get killed and eaten. Some young people are extra sensitive to the feelings that can come from eating animal products. If you are one of them, you will want to be really careful. It can make certain people feel suicidal. And, you don’t need your weight gain from disease causing foods.
I’m sure your parents/guardians will be supportive when they see that this program is well researched and approved by the experts. They can help you get the things that you need to succeed. I’m sorry if you have abusive or neglectful parents who may sabotage your efforts and life. That is really hard. But, there is so much healing and help available. Do what you can to find recipes and answers to life. I care about you teens, so write to me if you have a comments or questions.
I know that you face a lot of challenges these days so check out my inspiration section to get ideas for motivation. You are awesome. And, for a helpful story of bravery, click on this link to learn how you can be braver than you think.