How much should you eat in a day?

There are three main factors that determine your body's energy expenditure. The BMR, or the Basal Metabolic Rate, is the body's energy expenditure while you are at rest, about 60%-70% your bodies calories burned. BMR includes activities such as, respiration, heart beat, and maintaining your body's temperature, all important things. It is the minimum amount of calories needed to sustain life. To determine your BMR, multiple your body weight by 10 and add it to twice your body weight for the average adult male. For a teenager, you should multiple your weight by a bit more, like 12. For the average adult female on the other hand, you multiple your body weight by 10 and then add the body weight to that number, same as the males. Secondly, you have to add how many calories you expend in physical activities. To do this, you simply look up all sports you are doing, and there should be calculators out there that will tell you how many calories you expend doing these sports. Then lastly, it is the thermic effect of food, which is how much energy your body uses in order to digest food. The body has to increase its output of energy in order to digest the food. To get this number, you simply find the total number of calories you have eaten in a day, and multiplying it 10%. When you add these all together, you will get the number of calories you should be getting in a day to stay healthy. Note that this is the minimal amount that you should be getting to provide your necessary energy for your BMR, physical activites, and thermic effect of the food you eat.

why the average teen should take part in a healthy diet

  A study of Canadian and American adolescents has shown that not getting enough of the essential nutrients needed in your diet puts you at risk for respiratory problems. It is suggested that the intake of antioxidants, and anti-inflammatory micronutrients are linked to people getting less respiratory infections, as well as less severe asthma symptoms. People who have low dietary intakes of fruit, vitamin-E and omega3 fatty acids at greater risk of getting asthma. Also most teens lack calcium iron and zinc in their diets, and by drinking soda you actually leach the calcium form your bones. So in other words you are losing calcium form your already weak bones. The iron is needed to support an increasing amount of blood supply. Zinc is needed during the sexual maturation an adolescent goes through during the teen years. So by eating the right foods you are giving yourself the nutrients and minerals that you need to grow and mature properly, as well as ensuring that physical problems don’t arise due to dietary habits.

posted by Christopher