Snacks for Teens and ‘Tweens

Teenagers and ‘tweens bodies are going through a big growing spurt. My son was having fainting spells when he would stand up. After taking him to his pediatrician and double checking with a neurologist, the conclusions was he was growing so quickly, (he grew 3 inches and 2 shoes sizes in 6 months) that his arteries were struggling to keep up with the growing spurt of his body. Fortunately he out grew it and he is now 6’3″ tall. The pediatrician also told me at that time to let him sleep longer on weekends his body needed it. His body also needed healthy snacks here are some healthy snacks for your growing teenager or ‘tween.

Prepare snacks in advance. Make your own trail mix ( a healthy trail mix recipe is on our sister site www.CookingLessonsfromHome.com and separate it into small resealable baggies. Cutting up fruit ahead of time makes it easier to grab on the go. Keep carrot sticks, celery sticks, cut up and ready to eat with peanut butter and cream cheese.

Use a dry erase board to tell kids what snack are available today.

Keep healthy snacks available wherever you are. Stash nonperishable items, like 100% whole grain pretzels, in their backpack, the car, and in their sports bags. This way they will eat a healthy snack instead of having no option except vending machine junk food!

Here are some healthy snacks for tweens and teens to fuel activity:

Low fat cheese and whole grain crackers

Apples and peanut butter

Yogurt and a healthy granola

cheese sticks

Yogurt and fruit

Veggies sticks and ranch d

Hummus and pita chips

cottage cheese and fresh fruit

A good rule to follow is to combine at least two food groups in your snacks. This way you are getting a more nutrient dense snack. Adding protein or fat to a carbohydrate choice prevents you from getting hungry as quickly. It is important to avoid sugary snacks like candy bars. Sugary snacks will cause a quick energy increase followed by a crash. Plus these foods don’t protect your child’s body from disease, obesity or early aging.

By fueling the body properly, tweens and teens will have more energy to perform their favorite sports, games, and fun activities! Eating healthy snacks keeps the body going throughout the day and will prevent overeating at mealtimes.

It is also very important to hydrate the body. Water is the best source of hydration. Try and stay away from sodas and juice boxes.  These drinks contain high amounts of liquid calories, or calories our bodies receive from drinks with low amounts of nutrition. Drinking your calories can add up quickly and does not make your stomach feel as full as when you eat a meal. This can lead to unwanted weight gain. Sodas can also dehydrate the body, which makes water the best thirst-quenching drink. For those tweens and teens that are involved in intense sports that last over an hour, sports drinks can be consumed to replenish body’s electrolyte balance. But remember to keep these drinks in balance with adequate water since unwanted sugar can add up quickly. Sports and energy drinks do not have a regular place in the intake of minimally active children or adolescents since they contain a lot of calories, which need to be burned off with exercise.

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