Weaning your teen off junk food
If your teen is accustomed to eating junk food on a regular basis, don't expect that he or she will be eating tofu and kale in the morning. It takes time, and creativity, to change habits.
Step 1: Evaluate your home food environment
Do an honest assessment of your cabinets and refrigerator. Is healthy food hidden in the crisper or bottom shelves? What proportion of snack food is chips and cookies and how much is baby carrots, drinkable yogurt, and fresh fruit?
Step 2: Reorganize
Make grabbing healthy snacks even easier than eating junk food. Store cut-up veggies in single-serving ziploc bags in the fridge. Leave whole grain granola bars or single-serving pouches of nuts by the front door for your teen to grab on the way out.
Step 3: Restock
As your teen's favorite junk foods run out, involve your teen in restocking the pantry with smaller amounts of these foods and more healthy alternatives. Make a list of snack choices and ask your teen to pick which he or she would like.
Step 4: Make it fun
Make a healthy do-it-yourself pizza night by setting out mini-pizza crusts or pitas and a variety of toppings such as chopped veggies, shredded cheese, and tomato sauce. Start a tradition, such as trying a new recipe every week.
It’s all about choices
There are no foods that need to be off limits. Healthy eating is more about balancing nutrient-rich foods with occasional treats than it is about avoiding any specific foods. Compare the nutrition information for the foods below. Notice that there isn’t necessarily an obvious healthiest choice. Each option may be preferable in a different situation. Does this food need to fill you for hours or is this a special occasion treat? Keep these types of questions in mind when making nutrition choices.
| Fast Food Breakfast | Glazed donut 180 calories 8 g fat 1.5 g sat fat 4 g trans fat 25 g carb | Blueberry Muffin 470 calories 17 g fat 3 g sat fat 0 g trans fat 73 g carb | Plain Bagel 320 calories 2.5 g fat 0.5 g sat fat 0 g trans fat 62 g carb | Even though the donut is lowest in calories, it is also the highest in unhealthy fat. The higher calorie content of the muffin and bagel is due to the large portion size of these bakery products. None of these options has much protein. A breakfast that has protein (peanut butter, yogurt, eggs) will be more filling than any of these options. |
| Salty Snacks | Potato Chips (1 oz) 160 calories 10 g fat 160 g sodium 14 g carb | Pretzels (1 oz) 110 calories 1 g fat 580 mg sodium 23 g carb | Light Microwave Popcorn (1 oz) 120 calories 5 g fat 320 mg sodium 19 g carb | Potato chips are lowest in sodium but highest in fat; low fat pretzels are loaded with sodium. Popcorn is the only whole grain option listed. The extra fiber will make it more filling than the other choices. |
| Bar Snacks | Snickers Bar 280 calories 14 g fat 35 g carb 30 g sugar 4 g protein | Power Bar 240 calories 3.5 g fat 45 g carb 16 g sugar 10 g protein | Chewy Granola Bar 100 calories 3 g fat 18 g carb 7 g sugar 1 g protein | Calorie content of energy bars and candy bars are usually about the same, but the energy bar has more protein and less sugar. If a less filling snack will do, a granola bar is a good substitute. |
| Dairy Snacks | Vanilla Ice Cream (1/2 cup) 150 calories 8 g fat 16 g carb 11 g sugar 6% calcium | Frozen Yogurt (1/2 cup) 100 calories 3 g fat 17 g carb 13 g sugar 10% calcium | Yogurt (1 cup) 190 calories 2.5 g fat 33 g carb 8 g protein 25% calcium | The calorie information may surprise you, but nutrition is about much more than calories. The serving size of yogurt is twice that of ice cream or frozen yogurt so you are getting twice as much and a lot more calcium and protein. |
| Fast Food Sandwiches | Big Mac 540 calories 29 g fat 10 g sat fat 1.5 g trans fat | McDonalds Hamburger 250 calories 9 g fat 3.5 g sat fat 0.5 g trans fat | McChicken Sandwich 360 calories 16 g fat 3.5 g sat fat 1 g trans fat | Most fast food options are high in calories and unhealthy fat. Choose smaller sandwiches when possible and opt for grilled or baked options versus fried. |
| Drinks | 1% Milk 110 calories 13 g carb 12 g of sugar 8 g protein | Orange Juice 110 calories 26 g carb 22 g sugar 2 g protein | Soda 100 calories 27 g carb 27 g sugar 0 g protein | Don't let the calories fool you. All drinks are not created equal. OJ and soda are loaded with sugar. Milk packs in a lot of nutrition in one cup. |
Sandy LaPointe 11/17/08
I agree with Louisa. I raised both my kids the same, My 14 year old son prefers junk food, plain foods, no vegetables except peas just about every day and he will eat some fruits. It's a true battle to get him to eat healthy. My daughter eats anything I give her but for a few things. I pack her lunch for school. Everything is fresh and she will most always choose healthy over junk. My son is too thin for my liking and my daughter has always been in the highest percentile for weight. I limit the junk food at home but my son spends more time away from home these days and chooses he own foods. I feel that all I can do now is make sure he is making good choices at home.
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