Introduction
Just about everyone has heard it, “You are what you eat.” Never, has such a short adage encompassed the overall ideal of proper nutrition and development. During human growth and development the body and mind are evolving. Similar to other animals the developed human requires certain nutrients for proper functioning of life. For instance, it has been observed that adults with healthy lifestyles have healthy hearts, less skin problems, stronger immune systems and less gastrointestinal problems compare to adults without healthy lifestyles. Additionally, this famous adage is not only true during adulthood but throughout elderly life into senescence. However, one particular stage, adolescence; consider between the ages of 12-21 years is just as crucial as childhood.
In the stage of adolescence the child goes through astonishing changes of maturation not just of body but of mind as well. For a child going into adolescence a suitable and balanced nutrition is just part of the key that will unlock the door into a healthy adulthood. The rest of the key requires diet and exercise as well as a good support group of family and friends. Thus, by properly combining all of these factors an adolescent will hopefully mature, ready for the next stage in life; adulthood. But just what are the suitable requirements for a growing adolescent? And are diet and a good support group really necessary? The answers to these questions as well as others will be explored in the following, which will detail several themes about adolescence and nutrition. The themes include; physiological and psychological changes, nutritional requirements, food habits and eating behaviors, special situations and nutritional assessments and counseling. Therefore, by understanding these themes perhaps a new light can be shed on the importance of adolescence as a crossroad into adulthood.
Growth And Development: Physiological Changes
Many remember childhood as a time of...
