Though people must always eat enough fruits, vegetables, grains and nutritious meals, your nutritional needs are constantly changing. From birth to old age, you may need to modify your diet to ensure you feel your best. Meeting these needs can ensure you are energised, motivated, focused and feel physically well enough to complete your day's tasks.
Our following blog showcases how your nutritional needs can vary over time. It also shows which nutrients must be prioritised at each life stage to help you feel your best.
The Nutritional Needs of Young Children
Young children grow rapidly. You may often find they begin eating more and more, especially just before growth spurts. It's important to channel their eating to healthy, nutritious food, rather than sweets, chips and chocolates. Having plenty of fruit in the house and making sure that lunches and dinners are vegetables dense can support this. If they aren't lovers of their greens, you can also try blending their vegetables into pasta sauces to ensure they get their essential vitamins, minerals and proteins.
If they crave something sweet, our Nutritional Lattes are also nutrient-dense, making them the perfect alternative. We recommend our Cacao and Jaffa flavours for kids.
The Nutritional Needs of Teenagers
When puberty starts, you will notice that the already accelerated hunger of children may jump even more. During this phase of their life, young teenagers will crave kilojoules and energy-dense foods. This normally occurs from the age of 10 for girls and around 12 for boys. Like childhood, young teenagers may fill these nutritional needs and cravings with the wrong foods. As always, we aren't saying they shouldn't have a fun snack now and then. But, fuelling these cravings with fruits, vegetables and proteins will help them grow best.
Try to limit fast food and takeaway intake during this time as they often contain empty calories, which will only make them hungrier. Dairy, meat and grains are also essential during this time of their lives.
Due to their changed hunger needs, teenagers may be inclined to skip breakfast as they usually feel more hungry toward the afternoon. Introducing an easy-to-make and fast-to-consume breakfast, like our Superfood Breakfast Bowls, will fill their nutritional needs while ensuring breakfast doesn't become a chore.
The Nutritional Needs of Young Adults
By the time someone reaches early adulthood, they have stopped having growth spurts. They may find their hunger has fizzled down slightly and that they have fewer cravings for foods that give them hits of energy. Around this time of their lives is when people find themselves moving out or attending university. Unfortunately, this can also be a catalyst for a bad diet as they may spend more time eating out. If they don't have a good understanding of their nutritional needs, they may accidentally adopt a poor diet of high-fat, low-nutrition foods.
During this phase of their life, young adults must reduce the amount of salt and fat in their diet, especially as their metabolism slows. For women, it's also vital they eat foods high in iron, especially when they begin considering pregnancy.
It is detrimental to establish healthy eating habits during this time as the habits made during early adulthood usually stick with people throughout their lives.
The Nutritional Needs as we continue to age
As people continue to age, they will begin to eat less. Their metabolism will also continue to slow down. So, it's essential that the food they eat is nutritious and assists a good diet. This includes foods high in nutrients and low in GI, such as meats, fish, nuts, fruits, vegetables, legumes and grains. Cutting out as many fats and salts as possible is essential for keeping healthy. But, this doesn't mean you can't enjoy your favourite treats every now and then. It's just important to do so in moderation.
As well as fuelling nutritional needs from food, people of this age group can fill their nutritional needs from other sources, including receiving Vitamin D from the sun. It's also vital to drink enough fluids during this time to stay hydrated and promote well-rounded health.
If you need help understanding your nutritional needs, our team at Jomeis Fine Foods are always happy to help. Our range is great for making sure you get your intake of vitamins and minerals. Plus, with so many flavours available, we know you'll find one you love. Shop the range today.
