Whether it's training for a soccer game or playing a backyard game of catch, children's athletic performance, development, and growth depend largely on eating the right foods. Unfortunately, most children (and adults) forget just how important nutrition is to good health and athletic performance. Many children, especially in the years before puberty, have poor eating habits (skipping breakfast, eating the same foods day after day). As a result, their diets are missing nutrients and their growth and athletic performance may be impaired.
It is important to recognize that children are not miniature adults; they have special nutritional needs. It is especially important to meet their nutritional needs as they enter puberty, when they experience rapid growth as they undergo hormonal changes marking the beginning of adolescence.
The most appropriate diet for the youth athlete is one that:
Such a diet can be achieved by planning intake to include a variety of foods from each of the five major food groups in the U.S. Department of Agriculture's (USDA) Food Guide Pyramid [1]. Especially for children, the pyramid serves as a visual guide for choosing foods and planning healthful meals.
As parent, you should promote the three basic principles that are key to a high-performance diet:
To improve your child's diet, you can:
Providing nutritious meals around hectic practice schedules and away from home [7] is a particular challenge. Workouts may disrupt your child's meal schedule, resulting in a greater reliance on convenient fast food or the child eating alone at home before or after the family eats. As a result, it is very important to help your child make nutritious choices wherever he eats, whether it is at a fast food [8], family-style or ethnic restaurant [9], a grocery or convenience store [10], or on an airplane, or while competing in a foreign country.
Parents should educate children about basic facts about the different food groups and how different foods help or hurt athletic performance. Attempts to teach children nutritional concepts and information should take into account their age and developmental level (for example, by explaining to a 7 year old that foods containing carbohydrates, like bread and pasta, provide energy for their muscles, and that dairy foods like milk help build strong bones).
Dr. Nelson currently works with college athletes and is a nutrition health advisor for Sun-Maid. Previously, she was the team nutritionist for the San Francisco 49ers and provided nutrition consultation to the San Francisco Giants. Throughout her career, Dr. Nelson has advised both recreational and elite athletes. She is a nationally known speaker in sports nutrition and is the author/editor of several books and numerous scientific journal articles.
Links:
[1] https://www.momsteam.com/node/236
[2] https://www.momsteam.com/node/266
[3] https://www.momsteam.com/node/256
[4] https://www.momsteam.com/node/250
[5] https://www.momsteam.com/node/864
[6] https://www.momsteam.com/node/249
[7] https://www.momsteam.com/node/267
[8] https://www.momsteam.com/node/269
[9] https://www.momsteam.com/node/268
[10] https://www.momsteam.com/node/271
[11] https://www.momsteam.com/team-of-experts/performance-anxiety-kids-can-choke-under-pressure-in-sports-too
[12] https://www.momsteam.com/team-of-experts/gwenn-schurgin-okeeffe-md-faap/common-medical-problems-and-issues/hearts-and-heart-h
[13] https://www.momsteam.com/nutrition/sports-nutrition-basics/nutritional-needs-guidelines/more-fruits-vegetables-for-better-hea