Diet For Teenagers - Killer Foods to Avoid Feeding Your Teen

Invisible Killers

Chemical additives are accepted as a normal part of our food supply. Many of the ingredients added to packaged and processed foods sustain them for longer periods and keep them fresher longer, while others help retain their color and appearance so they will look appealing to the consumer's eye.

Some of these chemicals are known to be harmful to health, while the effects of others are still unknown. A diet for teenagers that doesn't include these harmful chemicals promote weight loss and long-term health.

High Fructose Corn Syrup

This hidden sweetener is found in nearly all packaged foods you'll find at the grocery store. It serves to keep foods fresh longer and retain moisture, but it has NO place in your teen's diet. Large quantities of high fructose corn syrup are known to cause heart problems and raise cholesterol levels.

Partially Hydrogenated Oils

When oil is hydrogenated it's heated and hydrogen bubbles are passed through it. This causes the fatty acids to gain some of the hydrogen particles, making the oil more dense. A partially hydrogenated oil is a semi-solid, like butter.

Food manufacturers use partially hydrogenated oil as a butter substitute because of its lower dollar cost, and the buck is passed on to your health. These oils are dangerous for your teen's health and can be attributed to weight gain, and more serious health problems such as cancer, diabetes, and heart disease later in life.

Artificial Sweeteners

While your teen is trying to lose weight you'll want to avoid white sugar and may look for substitutes, but be mindful that many artificial sweeteners are as harmful or more so than white sugar. Aspartame, for example, contains phenylalanine which can't be metabolized by some individuals. Other artificial sweeteners such as saccharin and sucralose (more commonly known as Splenda) aren't natural and may be harmful to your teenager.

Less is More

The shorter a list of ingredients is, the more likely it's a healthy option for your teen. This isn't always true, but inspecting food labels for some of the harmful food additives outlined in this article will improve any diet geared toward weight loss.

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