Nutritional Needs & Guidelines

With school and fall sports in full swing, now is an important time for your family to eat a high-quality protein breakfast, like eggs. Here are 3 quick and easy breakfast recipes.

According to a report released by the Trust for America's Health (TFAH) and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), the percentage of obese or overweight children is at or above 30 percent in 30 states. Additionally, obesity costs U.S. citizens an estimated $100 billion a year. A healthy back-to-school diet for teens is essential not only for overall health, but also to keep stress under control, increase energy and maintain mental processing and health.

Like carbohydrates, protein-rich foods are also an important part of a youth sports diet. While it is true that young athletes have an increased need for protein due to the demands of their sports and the fact they are growing, most tend to consume more than they require.

For some, chocolate falls into the category of junk food, a guilty pleasure, and ruiner of good intentions to lose weight.  But ads for (dark) chocolate suggest chocolate is good for us. After all, chocolate comes from plants and contains the same health-protective compounds found in fruits and vegetables. The question is whether chocolate is little more than an alluring form of refined sugar, saturated fat and empty calories or does chocolate (in moderation, of course) have positive qualities that might be beneficial for athletes as a part of a sports diet?

New research in adolescents demonstrates that a protein-rich breakfast, containing eggs, improves appetite control and additional research shows that a higher protein diet may help obese adolescents manage weight.

There is a general movement among many soccer players and other athletes to avoid salt. However, this is not always necessary; in fact, if your child or teen is a heavy sweater, or craves salty foods, he may benefit from the extra salt. 

Endurance sports athletes can improve performance by consuming a variety of carbohydrates during exercise and a balance of carbohydrates and protein after sports as part of a training and recovery diet.