Nutrition

There are several ways to check a child or teenager's hydration status or a change in hydration status over time. A youth's hydration status before and after a sport practice and how their status change are particularly important.  MomsTeam's hydration expert, Dr. Susan Yeargin, suggests using the mnemonic WUT (Weight Loss, Darker Urine, and Thirst) as a way to remember the three main ways to tell if a young athlete is dehydrated.

 

Most people know that eating disorders can be life-threatening.  What most people don't know is that eating disorders cause more deaths annually than all other mental and emotional health conditions combined.  That's why the Chicago-based Timberline Knolls Residential Treatment Center and the National Eating Disorder Association (NEDA) have designated the week of February 21 to 27, 2010 as National Eating Disorder Awareness Week. 

Young athletes attempting to lose weight and body fat or gain weight and muscle mass may resort to unhealthy weight-control practices, such as food restriction, vomiting, overexercising, diet-pill use, inappropriate use of prescribed stimulants (e.g. Ritalin) or insulin, nicotine use, and/or voluntary dehydration.  A policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics offers helpful advice to parents on healthy weight loss and weight gain.  Gradual weight loss or gain is best.

 

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NSF International, a non-profit firm that tests and certifies dietary supplements and sports nutritional products to ensure they are free of banned substances such as steroids, has announced full support for the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) "Supplement Safety Now" campaign.  The campaign will create increased awareness around this important public health issue and help safeguard consumers from taking steroids and other illegal or controlled substances in products that are marketed as "safe and legal" dietary supplements.

The recent Natural Food Products Expo East gave Youth Sports Parents a chance to sample new products ranging from vitamins, sports drinks, granola bars and protein mixes, to muscle rubs, juicers, lip balms, and our favorite, snacks. Out of all of the snacks we tried, here are some of our top picks, all great, healthier alternatives to the usual doritos, fruit rollups, potato chips and candy. Put them in with your kid’s lunch, they won’t know the difference, but you'll know they will be eating healthy!

With the start of school and the fall sports season comes the usual scramble by parents to find a nutritious snack to throw in their child's backpack or sports bag before they go off to school.  We've reviewed 9 high protein options that will help ensure that your young athlete has a nutritious snack that will give her the energy she needs for after-school sports and isn't tempted to hit the vending machine in the cafeteria for the empty calories of a candy bar.

With fall sports beginning around the country, often in dangerously hot weather conditions, Mobile Sports, Inc. (MSI) today announced the launch of iHydrate^TM, an innovative iPhone application giving athletes, parents of athletes, and coaches the tools and information they need to avoid dehydration and other, more serious heat-related illnesses.