Teens Should be Cautious about Dieting Fads

“Good food is very often, even most often, simple food.”

Diets for teens can be confusing: with the world changing every minute, consumers are as well. One’s diet is both an incredibly important and–surprisingly–unimportant factor in the lives of teens.

When bringing up a diet, people often think about not eating as much food. Via the National Library of Medicine, Hellas Cena (a Laboratory of Dietetics and Clinical Nutritionist) wrote, “A healthy diet is one in which macronutrients are consumed in appropriate proportions to support energetic and physiologic needs without excess intake”…“while also providing sufficient micronutrients and hydration to meet the physiologic needs of the body.”

Cena is saying that diet revolves around the basic nutrition needs of the body; in short, a diet is what everyone should have and follow. This eliminates any theory or thought that a diet is synonymous with not feeding oneself.

“I do not think someone should start looking into a specific diet until there is a specific need for them to do so.  Just a few specific needs are as follows: struggling to gain weight, nutrient deficiency, diabetes, high cholesterol, etc.  One would be surprised by how much their overall health is affected by the food choices that they make!” FAHS Family and Consumer Sciences teacher Mrs. Heather Kinney said.

Kinney believes that a well-balanced diet is the perfect route to good health, and one should only follow specific diets if one experiences troubles in health or nutrition. 

Kinney also brings up the topic of restrictive diets.

“I do not recommend people partake in diets that are extremely restrictive,” Kinney said. “These types of diets are not realistic and tend to lead to less healthy eating habits in the long run. One should enjoy foods from every food group within reason each and every day.  I suggest starting each meal off right by filling half of your plate with fruit and vegetables.  Additionally, food preparation techniques can help to keep your foods healthier and full of nutrients.  Steaming, baking, grilling, broiling, or microwaving are far healthier options than frying foods.”

To any student looking to start tracking what they eat or consume daily, Kinney recommends a website called myplate.org, which she says helps people “stay on track and meet their health goals”.