Cont. Childhood & Adolescent

Let.6

Nutrition concerns in childhood:

1-hunger & malnutrition2-malnutrition –lead connection3-Hyperactivity & hyper behavior.4-childhood obesity.5-meal times at home6-nutrition at school.

1-hunger & malnutrition

Low income children maybe hungry & malnourished.

When hunger is chronic ,children become malnourished and suffer growth retardation.

Worldwide ,malnutrition takes a devastating toll on children, contributing to nearly half of the deaths of children under four years old.

Hunger and behavior:Even when hunger is temporary, as when

child misses one meal, behavior and academic performance is affected.

Children who eat nutritious breakfast improve their performance and are tardy or absent significantly less often than their peers who do not.

Iron deficiency and behavior:Iron deficiency has well-known and wide

spread effects on children's behavior.In addition to carrying oxygen in the

blood, iron transports oxygen within cells, which use it to help produce energy.

Iron is also used make neurotransmitter-most notably, those that regulate the ability to pay attention ,which is crucial learning.

Other nutrient deficiencies and behavior:A child with any of several nutrient

deficiencies may be irritable,aggressive,disagreeable,or sad and withdrawn.

2-malnutrition –lead connection Children who are malnourished are

vulnerable to lead poising . Common to both iron deficiency and

lead poisoning are 1-low socioeconomic background and lack

of immunization against infectious disease.

2-pica-a craving for nonfood items. Many children with lead poising eat dirt or chew on newspapers( two common sources of lead).

3-Hyperactivity & hyper behavior Hyperactive children have trouble few

minutes sleeping, cannot sit still for more than few minutes at a time, act impulsively, and have difficulty paying attention.

These behaviors interferes with social development and academic progress.

The cause of hyperactivity remains unknown, but it affects about 5 % of young school age children.

4-childhood obesity. An estimated one out of every five U.S

children is overweight. Several factors affect the chance of

whether an obese child become an obese adult.

Obesity results from an 1-imbalance between caloric intake &

caloric expenditure.2-physical inactivity. Most likely, children have grown more

overweight because of their lack of physical activity.

TV watching may contribute most to physical inactivity.

TV factors obesity because:1-requires no energy beyond basal

metabolism.2-replace vigorous activities.3-encourge snacking.4-promote sedentary lifestyle.5-playing computer games influences

children's activity patterns similarly.

The single most important problem for obese children is the potential of becoming obese adults with all the social,economic,and medical ramifications that often accompany obesity.

They have additional problems ,too ,arising from difference in their growth ,physical health ,and psychological development.

Prevention & treatment of obesity: Parents are encouraged to make major

efforts to prevent childhood obesity or begin treatment early.

An integrated approach is recommended, involving diet, physical activity, psychological support, and behavioral change.

5-meal times at home

Parental guidance in food choices is necessary ,but equally important is teaching children consumer skills to help them make informed choices.

Child feeding tips:serve vegetables raw or slightly undercooked & crunchy.provide child-sized portions and utensils to make meal time fun for children.encourage children to help plan and prepare meals.Do not use food as reward for good behaviorto prevent chocking watch children eat and enforce a “sit down rule”.play first ,then eat.provide healthful snacks.set a good example-enjoy nutritious foods.

6-nutrition at school.Meals at school-The US governments funds several programs

to provide nutritious meals for children at school.

-Breakfast skipping is a concern of parents of school age children.

-Studies suggest they cognition & learning are adversely affected when children skip breakfast.

-Breakfast eating is correlated with improved school attendance.

Serving healthful lunches is only half the battle; students need to eat them ,too.

Nutrition during

Adolescence

Nutrition during Adolescence

Adolescence is a transitional stage of physical and mental human development that occurs between childhood and adulthood. The period from the beginning of puberty until maturity.In general ,the adolescent growth spurt begins at age 10 or 11 for females

12or 13 for males.

Before puberty male & female body composition differ only slightly but

during the adolescent spurt ,difference between the genders become apparent in the skeletal system ,lean body mass, and fat stores.

Energy and nutrient needs Energy & nutrient needs are greater

during adolescence than any other time of life ,except pregnancy and lactation.

Because it is the period of physical ,emotional and sexual maturation.

Approximately 15-20% of adult Ht & 50% of adult Wt are gained during adolescent.

The energy needs of adolescent vary greatly ,depending on their current rate of growth ,gender ,body composition ,and physical activity.

boys` energy needs may especially be high ;they typically grow faster than girls ,develop a greater proportion of lean body mass.

girls girls` start growing earlier than boys

and attain shorter heights and lower weights ,so their energy peak sooner and decline earlier than those of their male peers.

Thus girls need to pay attention to being physically active and selecting foods of high nutrient density so as to meet their nutrient needs without exceeding their energy needs.

The insidious problem of obesity becomes ever more apparent in adolescence and often continuous into adulthood.

Those with low-self-esteem may diet to lose weight even though their weight normal or even below normal.

Vitamins

The RDA for most vitamins increase during adolescent years.

During puberty, both the activation of vitamin D

And the absorption of calcium are enhanced, thus supporting the intense skeletal growth of the adolescent years without additional vit. D.

Iron The needs for iron increase during

adolescence for both females and males ,but for different reasons

females :iron needs increase as they start to menstruate

males: iron needs increase as their lean body mass develops.

Iron intake often fails to keep pace with increasing needs ,especially for females ,who consume less iron-rich foods such as meat & fewer total kcal than males.

Calcium

Adolescence is a crucial time for bone development, and Ca requirement reaches its peak .

Low Ca intake in times of active growth, especially when paired with physical inactivity, may compromise the developmental peak bone mass, which considered the best protection against adolescent fractures and adulthood osteoporosis.

Teenagers need to select 3-4 servings from the milk group daily to meet their Ca goal of 1300 mg/day.

Food choices and health habits

Teenagers eat what they want if it is convenient and if they have the time.

At any given time on any given day ,a teenager may be skipping a meal ,eating a snack ,preparing a meal ,or consuming food prepared by a parent or restaurant.

Snackso Snacks typically provide at least a

fourth of the average teenager's daily food energy intake.

o Most of snacks are high in fat and

low in Ca, iron, vitC, vitA,

and folate.Beverages

o Most frequently ,adolescent drink soft drinks instead of fruit juice or milk with lunch, supper and snacks( only breakfast they select juices).

o Soft drinks have higher energy intake and lower Ca .

o The substitution of soft drinks for milk appears to contribute to

1-inadequate Ca intake.2- the phosphoric acid in soft drinks works against

calcification & may lead to bone resorption.o Soft drinks may present a problem when

caffeine intake become excessive causes symptoms associated with anxiety-sweating ,tenseness,& inability to concentrate.

Eating away from homeo Adolescent eat about one-third of their

meals away from home ,and their nutritional welfare is enhanced or hindered by the choices they make.

Peer influenceo Many of the food and health choices

adolescent make reflect the opinions and actions of their peers .(ex. milk is “babyish”).

o Parents can setup the environment so that nutritious foods are available and can stand by with reliable nutrition information and advice ,but the rest is up to the adolescent.

Problems Adolescent Face

Physical maturity and growing independence present adolescent with new choices to make.The consequences of theses choices will influence their nutritional health both today and through out life.Some teenagers begin using drugs, alcohol, and tobacco; others wisely refrain.

Examples: vitC requirement for people who regularly smoke cigarettes is an additional 35 mg/day.

Thank you