Healthy Eating

Growing Healthily

Going through the teens and into adulthood comes with a tremendous amount of change. During your teenage years, you grow emotionally, functionally, and intellectually, developing a sense of independence, identity, and self-esteem. You also  grow physically, increasing your need for calories and nutrients. Developing a positive relationship with food will go a long way in helping you to become the healthy, self-reliant adult you want to be.

Teenagers also tend to experience growth spurts, typically around the ages of 12 and 14 which may leave some people feeling unhappy with the way their body changes. However, it's helpful to take the focus off physical appearance and instead focus your attention on how you feel and the positive benefits you get from eating well and eating healthily.

Eating Healthily

Eating healthily means getting the right balance of nutrients. As you grow, you will need more calories and an increase of key nutrients including protein, calcium, and iron. How much you need to eat depends on your individual needs. But in general, the best way to maintain a healthy weight is to eat a balanced diet and exercise regularly. It's okay to have an alternative diet - such as vegetarian or vegan - as long as you're getting the nutrients you need. Some people also have diets that don't include dairy or wheat, for example, due to lactose intolerance or coeliac disease, which are managed through a specialist dietician.

Eating difficulties

Gaining weight when you are growing up is normal and everyone’s weight fluctuates over weeks and months. The important thing however, is to keep healthy. Lots of people worry about what they look like and from time to time might be unhappy with their weight or shape, but for someone with an eating disorder these thoughts and feelings can have a serious impact on their life. There is no one cause of an eating disorder. Young people who develop eating difficulties and disorders often use eating or not eating as a way of coping with feelings of sadness, anxiety and stress, which can affect the way we feel about ourselves.

There are many different types of eating disorders but they're all treatable and a full recovery is possible. If you're experiencing issues with eating, it's important to ask for help as soon as possible. 

For more information on where to get help, click on the link to our Eating Difficulties page.

healthy MEALS and snacks

Breakfast:

Healthy breakfast ideas include cereals (Weetabix, porridge, Shreddies etc), brown toast, a boiled egg, low-fat yoghurt with fruit, toasted teacake or crumpets, a fruit smoothie. Here are some more:

• Toast with peanut butter and chopped banana.
• Beans or scrambled egg on toast.
• Porridge with chopped banana or other fruit, such as blueberries. 
• Overnight oats: Leave your oats to soak in milk overnight rather than cooking them in the morning. When you wake up, just add some fruit, such as banana or berries, or stir in peanut butter, chocolate chips.
• Easy peasy pancakes: Mix one egg with a mashed banana. Pour the mixture into a frying pan with a bit of marg or oil to stop it sticking. Cook on each side for a few minutes until cooked through. Put on a place and add an optional dollop of yogurt, a few grapes or berries, and a drizzle of honey. (Don't worry if it's not perfectly flat!)

Lunch:

• Pizza bagel : Cut the bagel in half, spread with your favourite sauce, grate some cheese on top and put under the grill until the cheese melts.
• Cheese on toast. You can switch the cheese out for eggs or sardines.
• Muffins with scrambled eggs.
• Pasta, tuna and sweetcorn: Cook the pasta and mix in the tuna and sweetcorn. Add some optional saladcream or mayonnaise. 
• A sandwich: There's no end to what you can put in a sandwich - tuna, cheese, ham, salad.
• Hummus, pita and veggies: Chop your raw veg into sticks - try carrots, cucumber, celery or pepper - along with your pita and dip them into the hummus.
• Egg & tomato wraps: Spread one side of a tortilla wrap with soft cheese. Place slices of boiled egg, and tomato, along with some lettuce leaves across the middle of the wrap. Wrap/fold or loosely roll up tortilla wraps to enclose filling; cut into 3 or 4 portions, or eat whole. 
• Baked potato with baked beans or grated cheese and a side salad.

SNACKS

• Rice cakes with cottage cheese or Marmite.
• A small bag of popcorn.
• Apple and celery sticks with peanut butter.
• A banana.
• Dried fruit such as apricots or raisins and a small handful of nuts.
• A hard boiled egg.

Healthy Recipe Ideas:

The sites below have some quick and easy recipe ideas. It doesn't matter if you don't have all the ingredients, you can always switch them out for something similar. For example, if you don't have cream cheese, use grated cheese instead. Or if you don't have rocket, use another leafy veg, like spinach or lettuce. Be imaginative and don't worry if things don't look the same as in the recipe photo! A useful tip is to keep tasting as you go along so you can adjust the flavour with an extra stock cube or a bit more spice.

Heart Matters: 25 easy recipes you can cook in 5 minutes or less.

NHS Healthier Family recipes: Healthy eating doesn't need to be dull!

BBC Good Food Easy Healthy Recipes: Some of these are slightly more advanced but not all of them. Don't worry if you don't have all the spices - just use what you have and taste it. Don't worry if you don't have the specified oil, such as rapeseed, any cooking oil will do.