Adolescent nutrition and health: characteristics, risk factors and opportunities of an overlooked life stage

Abstract

Adolescence is a pivotal, yet frequently overlooked, period of life, with this age group often no longer receiving the focus, care and protection devoted to other life stages. Nutritional vulnerability increases in adolescence due to heightened nutritional requirements, yet the quality of the diets consumed by this age group often deteriorates significantly. Poor-quality dietary patterns and insufficient nutrient intakes are frequently observed amongst adolescents both in Ireland and globally. This deterioration in diet quality is greatly influenced by individual, social and environmental determinants of behaviour and health. The influences of each of these factors change and increase as adolescents begin to interact independently with the surrounding world. Poor nutrition during adolescence can result in several immediate and long-term health consequences, including micronutrient deficiencies, increased risk of overweight/obesity and increased presentation of cardiometabolic risk factors, all of which have been observed as persistent issues amongst adolescents in Ireland and internationally. Adolescence is a critical period of intervention to protect youth both now and into their future lives. This age group can be particularly receptive to the influence of society and the surrounding environment, posing several avenues in which to influence adolescents towards more health-promoting behaviour. This review aims to summarise the key nutritional and dietary characteristics of adolescents, to provide an overview of the causes and consequences of poor nutrition in adolescence, and to highlight potential opportunities for intervention to protect the health of this age group, with a particular focus on evidence from an Irish context.

Assessment of Nutrient Intake and Diet Quality in Adolescent Dietary Supplement Users vs. Non-Users: The CRO-PALS Longitudinal Study

“…In fact, the intake was almost twice less than the recommended amount, which is in accordance with the HELENA study conducted on adolescents in Europe, where it was confirmed that adolescents ate only half of the recommended amount of fruits and vegetables [ 12 ]. Inadequate fruit consumption seems to be reported among adolescents on a global level [ 32 ]. Specifically, inadequate fruit consumption among Croatian adolescents could be partly explained by relatively high cost per 1000 kcal from fruit, in comparison with other food groups, as shown in a report for the Croatian market [ 33 ].…”

Nutrition-Related Knowledge, Diet Quality, Lifestyle, and Body Composition of 7–12-Years-Old Polish Students: Study Protocol of National Educational Project Junior-Edu-Żywienie (JEŻ)

“…Inadequacies in diet and physical activity, and their health consequences, occur with varying intensity depending on age, gender, nutritional knowledge of both adolescents and their parents, susceptibility to dietary trends, family characteristics, parenting style and parents’ lifestyle, parents’ work, and the level of social and living conditions, as well as environmental factors such as school food policy [ 9 , 14 , 28 , 29 ].…”

“…School is the second environment, coming next after family, that influences a proper lifestyle, including the nutrition of children and adolescents. The school’s activities cover formal nutritional education during lessons in accordance with the core curriculum, the meals and foods available at the school (in the canteen, school shop, vending machine), additional activities related to the promotion of a healthy lifestyle, e.g., external and internal educational programs, events organized at the school, e.g., child’s day, days thematically related to nutrition, as well as the frequency of physical education classes and additional physical activities [ 29 , 32 , 33 ].…”