Healthy Caloric Intake for Teens

Teens' diets need to be monitored carefully. Obesity in teens can cause major health problems later on in life, and taking steps to prevent diabetes and other physical ailments should begin as early as possible. Understanding how many calories teens need, as well as the sources of those calories, can help teens manage and maintain a healthy weight.

Significance

• Teens who pay attention to their calorie intake are more likely to maintain a healthy weight; although many eating disorders place a good deal of focus on calories, being aware of caloric intake is not in itself a bad thing. Working with calorie intake and managing a good body image are both important for keeping teens healthy.

Calories

• Calories are the amount of energy made available from food during the digestion process. Since teens' bodies are going through intense physical changes, they need a slightly larger amount of calories than the 2,000 calories recommended each day for adults. Active teens especially are in need of a slightly greater number of calories.
  On average, a girl in her teens should consume about 2,200 calories each day and a boy slightly more, from 2,500 to 3,000 calories per day.

Calories in Food

• While the amount of calories had each day is important for teens in maintaining their health, the source of those calories is equally important. If a few hundred calories each day are coming from junk food like sugary snacks, pop and fast food, teens are more likely to either overeat or have less energy due to the quality of the food energy.
  Maintaining a healthy diet can be challenging for teens, when unhealthy foods are much more accessible and much less expensive. However, parents and educators should stress the importance of developing healthy eating habits from an early age.

Exercise

• In addition to taking in a healthy amount of calories from food sources like vegetables, grains and proteins as opposed to sugar and fat, teens should also monitor their calories in conjunction with the amount of exercising they do. Teens who are significantly more active will need to consume more calories in order to maintain their weight and immune systems.

  Teens who consume larger amounts of calories but are less physically active should be encouraged to monitor their diets and activity so that they can find a healthy balance of eating and exercising.

Considerations

• When discussing caloric intake with teens, parents, educators and health care providers should be sure to work with teens and watch for signs of eating disorders. Eating disorders like anorexia and bulimia are common particularly in teenage girls as a result of poor body image, and obsessive attention to calorie intake can be a sign of an eating disorder in teens of either gender.