Teenagers and breakfast

mom2kpr
mom2kpr Posts: 348 Member
edited November 13 in Health and Weight Loss
I know that breakfast for adults is not important. I personally am not a breakfast eater. But what about teenagers? My 13 yr old daughter want to lose about 12 lbs. Looking at what she eats during the day & the fact that she is not a big breakfast eater either, I'm wondering if she could cut back on breakfast. I'm thinking that as a growing girl & that she gets up at 6:30 and lunch isn't until 12:30, that she should eat something in the morning. She is allowed to bring a snack & eat it when she's ready between classes. Thanks.

Replies

  • Need2Exerc1se
    Need2Exerc1se Posts: 13,575 Member
    This is a question for your pediatrian, not strangers on the internet with no training in pediatrics.
  • mom2kpr
    mom2kpr Posts: 348 Member
    Most doctors are still old school "breakfast is the most important meal of the day".
  • malibu927
    malibu927 Posts: 17,562 Member
    Speak to her doctor about this. We can't give any advice concerning minors, especially as her body is still growing and developing. Or look through sparkteens.com, where they are more set up to handling her needs.
  • elphie754
    elphie754 Posts: 7,574 Member
    mom2kpr wrote: »
    I know that breakfast for adults is not important. I personally am not a breakfast eater. But what about teenagers? My 13 yr old daughter want to lose about 12 lbs. Looking at what she eats during the day & the fact that she is not a big breakfast eater either, I'm wondering if she could cut back on breakfast. I'm thinking that as a growing girl & that she gets up at 6:30 and lunch isn't until 12:30, that she should eat something in the morning. She is allowed to bring a snack & eat it when she's ready between classes. Thanks.

    You should be asking a pediatric registered dietitian, not strangers on a forum.
  • Tubbs216
    Tubbs216 Posts: 6,597 Member
    Good luck. I tried everything to get my daughter to eat breakfast. She's now 19 and is away at college, so I have no control over what she eats.
    I used to slip a granola bar into her pocket as she was walking out the door, hoping she might eat it on the bus.
  • laura3977
    laura3977 Posts: 191 Member
    I agree with @Need2Exerc1se - she is only 13 and wanting to focus on healthy eating is great but due to the different needs kids have it would be best if you contacted her pediatrician and perhaps through him/her set up a meeting with a registered dietician that could give her a "plan" based on her needs.
  • BL_Coleman
    BL_Coleman Posts: 324 Member
    I used to drink instant breakfast as a teenager with skim milk ( about 200) calories once you add them together. I hate breakfast and this was great ( especially since I have been hypoglycemic all my life) and skipping breakfast as a teenager might have me passing out at school.
  • ptrm
    ptrm Posts: 3
    The body doesn't care what time it eats. If it helps your daughter to go through the morning not eating to lose weight, then let her do it. This is sorta like the approach "intermittent fasting".
  • callsitlikeiseeit
    callsitlikeiseeit Posts: 8,626 Member
    i have 2 teens (16 and 17) and i would go talk to your ped.

    both my girls eat SOMETHING for breakfast- whether its a protein bar or piece of fruit or cereal. im not too picky about what it is but i make them eat SOMETHING.
  • lsecula
    lsecula Posts: 19 Member
    edited February 2015
    I never liked to eat breakfast as a kid or teenager. My mom used to make me drink a Carnation Instant Breakfast every morning (starting in about 4th or 5th grade). Maybe something like that or just a yogurt. 6 hours is a long time to go without any food to start off the day. She might be super-hungry by lunch and over-eat.
  • PikaKnight
    PikaKnight Posts: 34,971 Member
    mom2kpr wrote: »
    Most doctors are still old school "breakfast is the most important meal of the day".

    Then look for a registered dietitian.
  • honeybee_kisses
    honeybee_kisses Posts: 172 Member
    I don't think skipping meals should be encouraged in teenagers at all. It's a very slippery slope, I've seen it. My daughter is nearly 13 and always tries to skip breakfast (not to lose weight, she'd just prefer more time playing on her phone!) I always nag her about it though and won't let up until she at least has some fruit or a cereal bar etc, something quick. Also she won't be able to concentrate in class is she's hungry.
  • brianlowell
    brianlowell Posts: 28 Member
    1. This should not be asked on some random forum...
    2. Losing weight at 13 years-old while her body is still in development shouldn't be a huge concern, and cutting back their food intake might not be the best move - a smarter move would be to watch what they eat and ingest into their bodies.

    Might be a good idea to talk to their pediatrician.
  • sfbaumgarten
    sfbaumgarten Posts: 912 Member
    Definitely discuss with her doctor.
  • r5d5
    r5d5 Posts: 219 Member
    I'm not an expert, doubt that any of us are...but I am just barely beyond my teen years, I'm 21, and I lost a good bit when I was an overweight 15-17 year old. I definitely found that breakfast helped me stay focused and attentive during class and carried my energy throughout the day. When I didn't eat breakfast, I often felt sluggish and grumpy, and tended to overeat at breaks. I can't offer you validated scientific advice, but I do think it is important your daughter eat something at breakfast, a piece of toast, fruit, yogurt...what have you, along with a snack which will help sustain her energy until lunch period. Just my thoughts--again, not an expert, just giving you some advice from my own personal experience.
  • kozinskey
    kozinskey Posts: 176 Member
    Personally, breakfast is really important for me to be functional during the day. I skipped it a lot in middle school and high school and felt like cr.ap all the time. I would say breakfast is a personal preference and it's not for you to decide. This is a question for your daughter to discuss with a doctor and/or dietitian.
  • mom2kpr
    mom2kpr Posts: 348 Member
    r5d5 wrote: »
    I'm not an expert, doubt that any of us are...but I am just barely beyond my teen years, I'm 21, and I lost a good bit when I was an overweight 15-17 year old. I definitely found that breakfast helped me stay focused and attentive during class and carried my energy throughout the day. When I didn't eat breakfast, I often felt sluggish and grumpy, and tended to overeat at breaks. I can't offer you validated scientific advice, but I do think it is important your daughter eat something at breakfast, a piece of toast, fruit, yogurt...what have you, along with a snack which will help sustain her energy until lunch period. Just my thoughts--again, not an expert, just giving you some advice from my own personal experience.

    Thanks! This is exactly what I was thinking. I just wanted to others opinions. Especially parents or young adults. I'm going to stick with my "you have to eat breakfast" .
  • r5d5
    r5d5 Posts: 219 Member

    Thanks! This is exactly what I was thinking. I just wanted to others opinions. Especially parents or young adults. I'm going to stick with my "you have to eat breakfast" .[/quote]

    Not a problem! Good luck to the both of you! And I'm sure you do this already, but make sure you're very supportive and encouraging towards your daughter. Losing weight as a teenager is hard and confusing when you don't understand proper nutrition, and your have kids at school saying 'eat only an apple' 'skip this and that meal...'
    Your daughter is lucky to have a caring parent like you! :)
  • segacs
    segacs Posts: 4,599 Member
    Also, I'd suggest doing the best you can as a parent to help her develop a healthy body image. 13 is a tough age for a lot of teenage girls. Puberty hits and you start feeling insecure and uncomfortable in your own skin. Maybe you gain a bit of weight, which is normal at that stage. Maybe you're thinking about what your friends are going to think, or worried about what the boys in your class will think. The media projects a lot of unhelpful images. Most studies show a sharp drop in self-confidence among girls of that age. Eating disorders are, unfortunately, abundantly common.

    Emphasizing healthy eating instead of calorie-counting or weight loss at this age could make a huge difference to her. Show her how to eat enough to fuel her body, help her focus on her goals (exercise, sports, things she dreams of doing in life) and help her reshape her ideal from "skinny" to "strong".

    Good luck!
  • LKArgh
    LKArgh Posts: 5,178 Member
    mom2kpr wrote: »
    I know that breakfast for adults is not important. I personally am not a breakfast eater. But what about teenagers? My 13 yr old daughter want to lose about 12 lbs. Looking at what she eats during the day & the fact that she is not a big breakfast eater either, I'm wondering if she could cut back on breakfast. I'm thinking that as a growing girl & that she gets up at 6:30 and lunch isn't until 12:30, that she should eat something in the morning. She is allowed to bring a snack & eat it when she's ready between classes. Thanks.
    A 13 year old with a goal to lose 12 lbs sounds scary to me. Unless she is obese, and she is following a plan by her pediatrician on how to lose a specific amount of weight, the whole post screams of negative body image issues. Can you talk to a specialist and come up with a balanced meal plan that covers a teenager's need and let's her reach a healthy weight? Teaching her to skip meals to lose X lbs, it is only setting her up for lots of trouble with food in the next years.
  • mom2kpr
    mom2kpr Posts: 348 Member
    aggelikik wrote: »
    mom2kpr wrote: »
    I know that breakfast for adults is not important. I personally am not a breakfast eater. But what about teenagers? My 13 yr old daughter want to lose about 12 lbs. Looking at what she eats during the day & the fact that she is not a big breakfast eater either, I'm wondering if she could cut back on breakfast. I'm thinking that as a growing girl & that she gets up at 6:30 and lunch isn't until 12:30, that she should eat something in the morning. She is allowed to bring a snack & eat it when she's ready between classes. Thanks.
    A 13 year old with a goal to lose 12 lbs sounds scary to me. Unless she is obese, and she is following a plan by her pediatrician on how to lose a specific amount of weight, the whole post screams of negative body image issues. Can you talk to a specialist and come up with a balanced meal plan that covers a teenager's need and let's her reach a healthy weight? Teaching her to skip meals to lose X lbs, it is only setting her up for lots of trouble with food in the next years.
    She's not obese, but she is a little overweight. A 12 lb loss would put her in the middle of her weight range. She's 13, she has poor body image. I don't know too many teenager girls that have positive body image. Also, I'm not teaching her to skip meals. She naturally is not a big breakfast eater. On weekends & summer when she sleeps until 10:30 she rarely eats until noon. I am making sre she eats healthy and does not undereat. We set up a sparkteen acct for her.
  • tomatoey
    tomatoey Posts: 5,446 Member
    Aw, man, 13 with a body image problem? Noooo don't put her on a diet. Get her into a martial arts class.
  • mom2kpr
    mom2kpr Posts: 348 Member
    segacs wrote: »
    Also, I'd suggest doing the best you can as a parent to help her develop a healthy body image. 13 is a tough age for a lot of teenage girls. Puberty hits and you start feeling insecure and uncomfortable in your own skin. Maybe you gain a bit of weight, which is normal at that stage. Maybe you're thinking about what your friends are going to think, or worried about what the boys in your class will think. The media projects a lot of unhelpful images. Most studies show a sharp drop in self-confidence among girls of that age. Eating disorders are, unfortunately, abundantly common.

    Emphasizing healthy eating instead of calorie-counting or weight loss at this age could make a huge difference to her. Show her how to eat enough to fuel her body, help her focus on her goals (exercise, sports, things she dreams of doing in life) and help her reshape her ideal from "skinny" to "strong".

    Good luck!

    Thanks. This is exactly what I'm trying to do. She is active in sports and likes to bike and go to the Y in the summer. We are working together to keep her strong and healthy.
  • Liftng4Lis
    Liftng4Lis Posts: 15,151 Member
    My daughter is 15 and rarely eats breakfast, but she does bring a morning snack. This is a very sensitive age for young ladies and I agree with Segacs. So much, try to help her develop a healthy relationship with food.
  • LKArgh
    LKArgh Posts: 5,178 Member
    mom2kpr wrote: »
    aggelikik wrote: »
    mom2kpr wrote: »
    I know that breakfast for adults is not important. I personally am not a breakfast eater. But what about teenagers? My 13 yr old daughter want to lose about 12 lbs. Looking at what she eats during the day & the fact that she is not a big breakfast eater either, I'm wondering if she could cut back on breakfast. I'm thinking that as a growing girl & that she gets up at 6:30 and lunch isn't until 12:30, that she should eat something in the morning. She is allowed to bring a snack & eat it when she's ready between classes. Thanks.
    A 13 year old with a goal to lose 12 lbs sounds scary to me. Unless she is obese, and she is following a plan by her pediatrician on how to lose a specific amount of weight, the whole post screams of negative body image issues. Can you talk to a specialist and come up with a balanced meal plan that covers a teenager's need and let's her reach a healthy weight? Teaching her to skip meals to lose X lbs, it is only setting her up for lots of trouble with food in the next years.
    She's not obese, but she is a little overweight. A 12 lb loss would put her in the middle of her weight range. She's 13, she has poor body image. I don't know too many teenager girls that have positive body image. Also, I'm not teaching her to skip meals. She naturally is not a big breakfast eater. On weekends & summer when she sleeps until 10:30 she rarely eats until noon. I am making sre she eats healthy and does not undereat. We set up a sparkteen acct for her.

    I must say I am surprised by the bolded statement. This is not normal. I know many teens "complaining" as in fishing for compliments, but actually no, most of them do not have a negative body image, regardless of their weight. Some do, but not most. If she really does feel bad about her body, this is not normal, not even if she is overweight. Is she exercising at all? Maybe finding a class she enjoys would help her? Or changing the style of clothes she wears?
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