The Teenage World Most teens are interested in nutrition because they either want to look good or improve their athletic performance. Some are concerned.

The Teenage WorldThe Teenage World Most teens are interested in nutrition because they

either want to look good or improve their athletic performance. Some are concerned about health but they don’t think that they will get sick. They think that's just for old people.

Girls naturally add some fat as they get older. In fact, if a girl doesn't have at least 17% body fat, she won't have normal periods. That may sound great, but it's not good for her body. Teenage girls experience a variety of transformations. The increased amount of body fat in early adolescence leads to a rise in concern with body image.

Boys often want to become taller and stronger. Again nature doesn't always cooperate because they begin their growth increase two years later than girls. That's really frustrating because boys don't develop their full muscle mass until a year after they hit their full height.

That can seem like forever, but eating a lot of junk food or drinking high protein drinks isn't going to help. Boys who overeat just learn bad habits that will make them fat as they get older.

You should not only get more active and eat better, but also choose the best eating habits, because starving yourself is bad for your brain, muscle and bones.

Eating Choices

Preteens and teens often voice their independence through the foods they choose to eat. One strong statement is the decision to stop eating meat. This is common among teens, who may decide to be vegetarian to control their weight.

To lose weight, look at your diet. If it has lots of sweet or fatty foods, replace them with fruits, vegetables, grains, and legumes. If your diet already seems healthy, try to get more exercise.

ObesityObesityYoung people's eating habits have been much in the

news lately, with shocking reports warning of a potential epidemic of obesity among the young.

The causes of obesity are complex and include genetic, biological, behavioral and cultural factors.  Basically, obesity occurs when a person eats more calories than the body burns up.  If one parent is obese, there is a 50 percent chance that the children will also be obese.  However, when both parents are obese, the children have an 80 percent chance of being obese. 

Obesity in childhood and adolescence can be related to:

poor eating habits

overeating or binging

lack of exercise (i.e., couch potato kids)

family history of obesity

medical illnesses (endocrine, neurological problems)

medications (steroids, some psychiatric medications)

stressful life events or changes (separations, divorce, moves, deaths, abuse)

depression or other emotional problems

Obesity

Eating DisordersEating DisordersA lot of young people, even not being overweight,

want to be thinner. They often try to lose weight by dieting

or skipping meals. For some, worries about weight become

an obsession. This can turn into a serious eating disorder:

binge, bulimia nervosa or anorexia nervosa.

Binge Eating Binge Eating DisorderDisorder

Most of us overeat from time to time, and some of us often feel we have eaten more than we should have but it doesn’t necessarily mean that we have binge eating disorder. People with binge eating problems often eat an unusually large amount of food and feel their eating is out of control. People with binge eating disorder also may:•eat much more quickly than usual during binge episodes •eat until they are uncomfortably full •eat large amounts of food even when they are not really hungry •eat alone because they are embarrassed about the amount of food they eat •feel disgusted, depressed, or guilty after overeating.

Bulimia NervosaPeople with bulimia nervosa also eat large amounts of

food. However, they usually purge, fast, or do strenuous exercise after they binge eat.

Purging means vomiting or using a lot of diuretics (water pills) or laxatives to keep from gaining weight. Fasting is not eating for at least 24 hours. Strenuous exercise, in this case, means exercising for more than an hour just to keep from gaining weight after binge eating. Purging, fasting, and over exercising are dangerous ways to try to control your weight.

Anorexia NervosaAnorexia NervosaSigns of Anorexia

•Weight loss or unusual weight changes

•Periods being irregular or stopping

•Missing meals, eating very little and avoiding

“fattening” foods

•Believing they are fat when underweight

•Exercising excessively

•Becoming preoccupied with food, cooking for other

people

•Using laxatives and vomiting to control weight.

ExercisingExercisingThe thought of exercise doesn't make everyone jump with

joy but there's an activity out there to suit everyone. It's time to stop making excuses. These are the most common excuses we usually hear:

•"It's not cool."

•"None of my friends or family do it."

•""It's sore/uncomfortable/sweaty."

•"I don't want muscles."

•"I'm overweight/skinny/disabled."

•"I'd rather play with the computer/watch

TV/talk to my mates."

Exercising is good for your health and here are some tips you

can think about:

•It's an opportunity to meet up with friends or make new ones.

•Better general fitness, and stronger bones and muscles.

•It stops you putting on weight.

•You'll feel a sense of achievement.

Good exercise doesn’t mean that the more intensive the

exercise, the more effective it is. You only have to select and do an

exercise of medium intensity. During the process, you should feel slight

perspiration, faster heartbeat and deeper breathing.

Appropriate Amount Appropriate Amount of Exercise of Exercise

Why do teenagers:

SmokeDrink Alcohol

Take Drugs

Because they want to impress others;

It's fashionable;

It improves self esteem/self confidence;

It helps decrease stress situations;

It helps to relax;

Teenagers get a thrill out of it as they know it's illegal;

They do it out of curiosity;

They do it to look older;

?

They do it because of family problems;

They do it to imitate idols, actors or actresses;

What are the consequences of smoking?

Your teeth become dark;

You get older and more tired more quicklly;

It affects the health of the people around the smoker;

It has a bad effect on ozone layer;

It causes addiction;

It's an expensive habit;

It causes breathing problems;

Your breath smells bad;

It causes lung/tongue/throat cancer;

What are the consequences of taking drugs?

It causes addiction and dependency which can be difficult to get rid of;

It's the most expensive addiction;

You can be in jail a long time if you are caught with drugs because it`s a

crime;

Drugs lead us to commit crimes to get hold of them;

You can die from an overdose if you take too many drugs;

Addicts can become aggressive or depressed if they don't take drugs for

a long time. They get withdrawal symptoms;

Drugs are very bad for your health;

What are the consequences of drink alcohol?

It affects your brain cells when you are young

It causes liver problems;

It makes your heart beat faster;

It makes you lose control of your reflexes and you do stupid

things;

It's an expensive habit

If you are caught drinking and driving you will go to prison

If you are caught drinking and driving you will go to prison;

At work, alcohol, can you fired;

SEXUAL HEALTH

HIV The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) is the virus that causes

AIDS (acquired immunodeficiency syndrome). The virus gets its name

because it infects and damages part of the immune system — the

body's natural defence system.

Often the only way to know if someone is infected with HIV is through

testing. That's because people who are HIV positive may not know

that they have the virus. Most of the signs that someone has HIV don't

show up until that person has developed full-blown AIDS. By that

point, the person is sicker and the disease can be harder to treat.

Here are the facts on what's involved in getting tested — and who

should get tested for HIV and why.

Who is at Risk?

When teens in the United States become infected with HIV, it usually

happens in one of two ways:

-By sharing needles used to inject drugs or other substances

(including needles used for injecting steroids, and tattooing and body

art). If the person who has used the needle is infected with HIV, his

or her blood on the needle can infect anyone else who uses the

same needle.

-Through unprotected sex

This can happen when body fluids such as semen (cum), vaginal

fluids, or blood from an infected person get into the body of someone

who is not infected. Everyone who has unprotected sex with an

infected person is at risk of contracting HIV, but people who already

have another sexually transmitted disease (STD) are even more at

risk.

MENTAL HEALTH

Anorexia and Bulimia • Anorexia and bulimia are more commonly known as anorexia and

bulimia. The two disorders can be difficult to distinguish from each

other because they have similar characteristics: With both anorexia

and bulimia, the person will have a distorted image of his or her

body. That person will seem to be obsessed with what he or she

eats.

• People with anorexia have an intense fear of being fat. When a

person has anorexia, he or she hardly eats at all — and the small

amount of food that is eaten becomes an obsession. A person with

anorexia may weigh food before eating it or compulsively count the

calories of everything. It is not unusual for a person with anorexia to

also exercise excessively in an attempt to lose weight.

• Bulimia is a bit different from anorexia because the

person with bulimia doesn't avoid eating. Instead, he or

she eats a large amount of food then gets rid of it quickly

by vomiting or taking laxatives. This is commonly known

as "binge and purge" behaviour. Like anorexia, bulimia

tends to affect girls and young women more than guys.

Unlike anorexia, you can't always tell by looking whether

a person has bulimia. In fact, someone with bulimia may

appear average or even above average in weight.

What Causes Anorexia and Bulimia?

• For girls, even though it's completely normal (and necessary) to gain some additional body fat during puberty, some respond to this change by becoming very fearful of their new weight and feel compelled to get rid of it any way they can. It's easy to see why people may develop a fear of any weight gain, even if it's healthy and temporary: We're overloaded by images of thin celebrities — people who often weigh far less than their healthy weight. When you combine the pressure to be like these role models with a changing body, it's not hard to see why some teens develop a distorted body image.

• Anorexia:• drops weight to about 20% below normal • denies feeling hungry • exercises excessively • feels fat • withdraws from social activities

• Bulimia:• makes excuses to go to the bathroom immediately after

meals • eats huge amounts of food, but doesn't gain weight • uses laxatives or diuretics • withdraws from social activities

Eating Disorders

Made by

• Liliana Azevedo nº13 10ºB

• José Pedro nº12 10ºB

• João Pimenta nº8 10ºB