adminBeaven Dhliwayo Features Writer
The country should engage adolescents in its fight against malnutrition, as they are among key demographics in the achievement of this noble cause.
In most developing countries, Zimbabwe included, nutrition interventions have mainly been focusing on young children as well as pregnant and lactating women, thus neglecting adolescents.
Addressing the nutritional needs of adolescents could be an important step towards breaking the vicious cycle of intergenerational malnutrition, chronic diseases and poverty.
Today, there are over 1,2 billion adolescents aged 10-19 in the world and nearly a quarter of people in sub-Saharan Africa are aged between 10 and 19.
The health and nutrition of adolescents are becoming global priorities. Adolescents understand young people’s needs better and getting them involved in decision-making on policies that affect them is vital. Because of this, youth voices can be an incredibly powerful force for bringing about the changes they want to see.
It is against this background that the Zimbabwe Civil Society Organisations Scaling Up Nutrition (ZCSOSUNA) has decided to partner with schools in raising nutrition awareness among secondary school going adolescents in a campaign dubbed, “Let’s kick out stunting”.
This is an important step in the country as adolescents will be given a platform to speak on how malnutrition is affecting them. In addition, the campaign will also raise awareness on the dangers of child marriages among the same target audience.
In an interview with The Herald, ZCSOSUNA national coordinator Kudakwashe Zombe said it was important to introduce nutrition to adolescent girls. Adolescence is the transition period between childhood and adulthood; a window of opportunity for the improvement of nutritional status and correcting poor nutritional practices.
This is about the same period puberty sets in, typically between the ages of 10 and 13 years in girls. Adolescence is characterised by the growth spurt, a period in which growth is very fast. During this time, physical changes affect the body’s nutritional needs, while changes in one’s lifestyle may affect eating habits and food choices.
Zombe said: “Adolescent nutrition is, therefore, important for supporting the physical growth of the body and for preventing future health problems.
“All parents should, therefore, pay particular attention to the nutritional needs of their teenagers. Nutrition is essential for adolescent girls. Any nutritional deficiency experienced during this critical period of life can have an effect on the future health of the individual and their offspring.
“For example, failure to consume an adequate diet at this time can result in delayed sexual maturation and delayed or retarded physical growth. The rapid physical changes of adolescence have a direct influence on a person’s nutritional needs.
“The growth spurt that occurs in adolescence, second only to that in the first year of life, creates increased demand for energy and nutrients. Nutritional status and physical growth are dependent on one another such that optimal nutrition is a requisite for achieving full growth potential,” he said.
The nutritionist emphasised that nutrition for the adolescent girl is particularly important, but under-nutrition (too little food or food lacking required nutrients) in adolescents frequently goes unnoticed by their families or the young people themselves.
Adolescence is a time to prepare for the nutritional demands of pregnancy and lactation that girls may experience in later life. He added that under-nutrition negatively affects adolescent girls.
“It affects their ability to learn and work at maximum productivity and also increase the risk of poor obstetric outcomes for teen mothers.
“Under-nutrition arrests the healthy development of future children while affecting sexual maturation and growth,” he said.
He added that it prevents the attainment of normal bone strength and the development of healthy teeth if an adolescent does not get enough calcium. It is also a well-established fact that children born to short and skinny women are more likely to be stunted and underweight (low weight for age).
What is worrying, therefore, is that the negative effects of adolescent malnutrition persist throughout a woman’s reproductive life. The nutrition expert said the most important nutrients that need to increase during adolescence include energy, protein, calcium, and iron. Energy Energy needs of adolescents are influenced by activity level, basal metabolic rate, and increased requirements to support pubertal growth and development. Adolescents need additional energy for growth and activity.
Adolescent girls need approximately 2 200 calories each day. This is a significant increase from childhood requirements. To meet these calorie needs, adolescents should choose a variety of healthy foods, such as lean protein sources, low-fat dairy products, whole grains, fruits, and vegetables.
In an attempt to meet their energy needs, adolescents can fall prey to unhealthy, coercive and aggressive advertisements. They must, therefore, be well informed in the choice of healthy foods both at home and in school.
Fats and oils: During adolescence, dietary fat continues to play important roles as an energy source, a significant cell structural component, a precursor to agents of metabolic function and a potent gene regulator. Most dietary guidelines for children and adolescents recommend 25 percent of total energy as fat, with less than 10 percent of energy from saturated fat for children aged over 15 years.
Protein: Adolescents need between 45 and 60 grammes of protein each day. Most teens easily meet this requirement with their intake of beef, chicken, eggs, and dairy products. Protein is also available from certain vegetable sources, including tofu and other soy foods, beans, and nuts.
These foods should be included in the diets of vegetarians, especially. When protein intakes are consistently inadequate, reductions in linear growth, delays in sexual maturation and reduced accumulation of lean body mass may occur.
Calcium: It is estimated that 45 percent of peak bone mass is attained during adolescence and so adequate calcium intake is important for the development of dense bone mass and the reduction of the lifetime risk of fractures and osteoporosis.
Additionally, calcium needs during adolescence are greater than they are in either childhood or adulthood because of the increased demand for skeletal growth. Adequate calcium intake is essential also for development of strong and dense bones during the adolescent growth spurt.
Inadequate calcium intake during adolescence and young adulthood puts individuals at risk for developing osteoporosis later in life. In order to get the required calcium needs, teens are encouraged to consume three to four servings of calcium-rich foods each day.
Milk provides the greatest amount of calcium in the diets of adolescents; other sources of calcium include seeds, cheese, yoghurt, sardines, beans and lentils and fortified foods.
Iron: Iron is vital for transporting oxygen in the bloodstream. A deficiency of iron causes anaemia, which leads to fatigue, confusion and weakness. With the onset of adolescence, the need for iron increases as direct consequence of rapid growth and the expansion of blood volume and muscle mass.
As adolescents gain muscle mass, more iron is needed to help their new muscle cells obtain oxygen for energy. The onset of menstruation imposes additional iron needs for girls. Good sources of iron include beef, chicken, legumes (including beans and peanuts), enriched or whole grains, and leafy green vegetables such as spinach.
Zinc: Zinc is important in adolescence because of its role in growth and sexual maturation. It is known that serum zinc levels decline in response to the rapid growth and hormonal changes that occur during adolescence. Zinc is naturally abundant in red meats and whole grains. Additionally, many breakfast cereals are fortified with zinc.
Folate: Folate plays an integral role in DNA, RNA and protein synthesis. Thus, adolescents have increased requirements for folate during puberty. Rich sources of dietary folate consumed by adolescents include ready-to-eat cereal, orange juice, bread, milk, and dried beans or lentils.
Eating and snacking patterns: Adolescents tend to eat differently than they did when younger. Preoccupied with after-school activities and engagement in active social endeavours, adolescents are not always able to sit down for three meals a day.
These apparent busy schedules may lead to meal skipping, snacking throughout the day, and more eating away from home. Many teens skip breakfast, for example, but this meal is particularly important for getting enough energy to make it through the day, and it may even lead to better academic performance.
When teens skip meals at home frequently, the likelihood of purchasing fast food from a restaurant, vending machine,or convenience store will be high.
These foods tend to be high in fat and sugar and they provide little nutritional value. More importantly, eating too many fast foods can lead to weight gain, which may predispose one to diseases such as diabetes and heart disease.
Potential nutrition-related problems for adolescent children: Poor eating habits during the critical adolescent years may lead to both short- and long-term health consequences, including obesity, osteoporosis, and sexual maturation delays.
Adolescents are at risk of obesity, obesity-related chronic diseases, and eating disorders.
Obesity: All over the world, adolescent obesity is on the rise. Obesity is associated with an increased risk of obesity-related diseases like diabetes and heart disease.
Experts have linked this rise in obesity to lack of physical activity and an increase in the amount of fast food and “junk food” available to adolescents. Staying active and avoiding sugary drinks and fatty snacks foods will promote a healthy weight for adolescents.
Eating disorders: Over-eating, under-eating and eating disorders can have serious health impacts. Adolescents tend to be conscious of appearances and may feel pressured to be thin or to look a certain way (that is self-image).
Fear of becoming obese may lead to overly restrictive eating habits. High-risk adolescent groups Though adolescents in general are nutritionally vulnerable, certain groups of adolescents may be at greater risk for nutritional inadequacies.
This category of adolescents includes the following:
Pregnant adolescents: When a teenager becomes pregnant, she needs more nutrients than her non-pregnant colleagues to support both her baby and her own continued growth and physical development.
If her nutritional needs are not met, her baby may be born with impaired foetal growth and the subsequent low birth weight or other health problems. For the best outcome, pregnant adolescents need to seek prenatal care and nutrition advice early in their pregnancy.
Athletes: Adolescents involved in athletics may feel pressure to be at a particular weight or to perform at a certain level. Some young athletes may be tempted to adopt unhealthy behaviours such as crash dieting, taking supplements to improve performance, or eating unhealthy foods to fulfil their hearty appetites. A balanced nutritional outlook is important for good health and athletic performance.
Vegetarians: A vegetarian diet can be a very healthy option. However, adolescents who follow a vegetarian diet, whether for religious or personal reasons, need to carefully plan their intake to get the protein and minerals they need. Strict vegetarians (those who do not eat eggs or dairy products), also known as vegans, may need nutritional supplements to meet their needs for calcium, vitamin B 12, and iron.
Peter Tanyanyiwa
Online Reporter