The demands on you change throughout your life. Eating well, exercising, and other healthful habits can help keep you going at every stage.

Teens and energy

Teenage boys and girls are busy with school, friends, sports, and clubs. Plus, they're still growing and developing at a rapid pace.


Nutrition

Teens spend more and more time with their friends and make food choices away from home. Peer pressure, busy schedules, bigger appetites, and seeking independence will influence their food choices. Demonstrate healthful habits and offer nutritious foods to your teen. Keep your fridge stocked with fresh fruits and vegetables. Stock up on single-serve vegetable soups, like Campbell's® Soup at Hand® Classic Tomato soup. Buying pre-cut veggies or even filling containers from the grocery store salad bar can save you time, too. Encourage low-fat milk, yogurt and cheese to ensure your teen is getting enough calcium for bone growth and development. If your teen avoids dairy products there are alternate ways to fit in calcium. Have your teen try Calcium Enriched V8® 100% vegetable juice, SpaghettiO's® Plus Calcium pasta, or other calcium-enriched foods. Talk to your teen about healthful eating. See our "Good Nutrition: The Building Blocks." Teens get messages about food from friends, coaches, the media, and food advertisements. Talk to them about the information they're hearing to make sure it's accurate.


Exercise and lifestyle

Make sure your teenage kids are sleeping enough. Teens tend to need a lot of sleep — even more than 9 hours a night.

There are a variety of exercise options for teens. School and club sports take center stage for some teens, while others enjoy activities like yoga, Pilates, and martial arts classes. Even a school dance can count as exercise. Support and encourage your teens to be physically active. Active teens are more likely to be active adults.

Between school, sports, friends, after-school jobs, and other activities, teenagers can get overwhelmed. Make sure your teen has some unstructured time, too. Regular family meals, a family "game night," or even a stroll around the neighborhood can help your kids de-stress.

Help your teen prioritize by routinely reviewing his or her schedule. Young people often need help seeing the big picture and looking ahead.

Be a good example. If you take time out for yourself and relax, your child is more likely to see the value of relaxing.

Consider having your teen help make dinner one or two nights a week. If they show an interest, let them try making the family meal on their own.