Snacks for teenagers ...

nzmegs

Pigpen - please research cholesterol and how IMPORTANT it is in the body before you question the use of good saturated fats in the diet. trans fats and processed oils are very bad, but natural fat such as lard, eggs and butter are excellent sources of the fats our bodies need. How did the cave men survive millions of years without low fat foods I wonder? Funnily enough they were much healthier than we are.
Tghis is not a restrictive diet. it is the diet we all survived on for millions of years before the invention of processed foods and low fat (which is a marketers dream). We have only eaten this diet for 100 years or even less and we are all doing so well on it aren't we?

By the way i lost 50 pounds by stopping eating low fat and opting to eat plenty of fat and protein I have kept it off for more than a year. try that with a low fat low calorie diet. And it is perfectly healthy for young people. perhaps even preferable.

nzmegs

Carbs are not needed for energy. Your body can turn protein and excess fat into the glucose you need through a process called glucogenesis. it is a perfectly healthy way to exist and reduces the number of highs and lows which lead to hunger.

pigpen

nzmegs wrote: »

Pigpen - please research cholesterol and how IMPORTANT it is in the body before you question the use of good saturated fats in the diet. trans fats and processed oils are very bad, but natural fat such as lard, eggs and butter are excellent sources of the fats our bodies need. How did the cave men survive millions of years without low fat foods I wonder? Funnily enough they were much healthier than we are.
Tghis is not a restrictive diet. it is the diet we all survived on for millions of years before the invention of processed foods and low fat (which is a marketers dream). We have only eaten this diet for 100 years or even less and we are all doing so well on it aren't we?

By the way i lost 50 pounds by stopping eating low fat and opting to eat plenty of fat and protein I have kept it off for more than a year. try that with a low fat low calorie diet. And it is perfectly healthy for young people. perhaps even preferable.

I know how important it is but too much is bad and causes heart disease. The body can make its own cholesterol from a normal diet so you don't actually need to eat any at all really. we have dietician appt's every few months, and my son is told no more sat. fats than he gets from his 1 bacon and brie sandwich a day. and he is stick thin and used to be thinner!

You are an adut.. your dietary needs are different.. noone should ever go on a diet which restricts a certain food group (carbs is quite definitely a food group) without professional advice.

He may not even be overweight, he may be the upper end of a healthy weight or just a bigger build than his siblings. It is hardly fair to tell a teen to limit his eating when he is still growing unless they are actually overweight.

I'm glad it worked for you. I would be interested to know the state of your arteries though and what your blood cholesterol was after a year. I don't do low fat either.. it is often full of artificial sugars which are really nasty.

Mrs_Imp

nzmegs wrote: »

My advice is to offer snacks such as hard boiled eggs (two of these will fill up even the hungriest teenager) slices of cheese (no crackers), berries with some whipped cream, full fat greek yoghurt (no sugar).

'Cave men' ate nuts, seeds, berries, meat. They were hunter-gatherers. They hunted/scavanged meat and gathered nuts, berries, leafy matter etc. It wasn't really until the transition to settled farming communities that we ate cheese, yoghurt etc. We had to develop the enzymes in our stomachs to process dairy products. So no, we have not always eaten such a diet.

lostinrates

Op, my mother used to make big batches of simple veg soups for the afternoon munches. Low fat, warming, cheap, healthy, often used left over veg. In the summer it was fruit or gazpacho. I still do this today, especially in the summer, make a big jug of gazpacho to be a healthy, quick and tasty snacky lunch, or have a smaller amount mid morning and mid afternoon.

miss_independent

I'd ditch the biscuits and crisps and try and stick to snacks that are as unprocessed as possible.

Could you make your own "healthy" flapjacks/energy bars? There are loads of recipes online - the combination of oats and honey or agave (ie NOT Golden Syrup lol) gives a slow release of energy and you can put seeds or dried fruits in there. Plain tortilla chips or popcorn you have popped yourself or the healthy versions (not the butter loaded microwave ones) - he could experiment with adding different flavours and spices. Make up nut mixes such as almonds, dried cranberries and a small amount of dark chocolate chips. 15 pistachio nuts is a normal sized portion but really fills me up and is healthy! Crudites and dips? Salsa based dips are healthier than creamy ones or you could get reduced fat humous.

If he is more hungry how about having a big pot of homemade soup on the hob that he could help himself to. Minestrone is good for filling you up, as are lentil and pulse based soups. He could make "healthy" pot noodles with straight to wok noodles, spices, spray oil or a healthy oil and stir fry veg - I do this with prawns or chicken breast for an evening meal - adding in some veg stock and hot curry powder. Takes minutes but tastes WAY better than a pot noodle.

I agree with others about protein - have things like Chicken drumsticks, prawns, leftover bits of roast and cheeses to hand. I'm not too keen on processed meats like packaged ham or luncheon meats myself - too much crap in them!

Would he try smoothies?

Darren.B_2

Yeah popcorn is a great, healthy snack (as long as you make it yourself and don't buy the salty pre-packed microwave ones). Realistically a teenager used to crisps and chocolate is going to settle for fruit!

geoffky

We have our daughters dinner ready for her..I thought that was normal..
She does not get in until 4.30 due to a hour on the bus..

mucklebones

Peanut butter (no added sugar) and rice cakes.

minimoneysaver

Homemade soup with a huge chunk of brown bread is a fantastic large snack to fill him up.

Porridge is also great. You can make a compote of berries & vanilla to sweeten it too.

Smoothies are also fab!