CALORIES AREN'T EVERYTHING
A calorie is a unit of energy, often used as a measurement of the amount of energy that food provides.
Different foods are capable of affecting the body in different ways, so when we focus to strictly on the numeric value of what we consume, we risk missing a more important component of the fueling puzzle. You can create a calorie-based diet and still lack in essential vitamins and minerals which can pose a serious threat to your health. When we consider the quality of what we eat, we don’t need to obsess over calories, but focus on what exactly it is that you are putting into your body. Instead of making 1500 calorie/day diets, focus on the health food, the food that allows your body to stay physically fit, develop, and grow healthily. Especially during growth and puberty, it is cruicial to focus on nutrients that you need more of including calcium, protein, fats, iron, and carbohydrates which will aid in your development.
Healthy eating starts with knowing everything about what you are putting into your mouth. Reading the nutrition label on the foods you are eating can help you make wiser food choices. We all need to understand that it’s not about the ‘fat free’ or ‘low calorie’ that’s written on what we are eating. When eating, girls try to set a goal for themselves to not eat a lot, and when they do eat they have the fatty foods. For example, if an individual is trying to consume 1500 worth of calories and does that by eating chips and burgers it would be less healthy then having 2000 calories of vegetables and dairy or proteins. You cant simply just focus on the "numbers" but rather focus on looking for the right foods and eating the appropriate quantities. We have to stay in better control of our eating habits and not let what girls see as an obsession, control our life and everyday decisions. You must understand that food is not our enemy, it is a necessity we use to grow, develop, and get energy in our daily life. It becomes ‘abusing’ your limits, when you take advantage of the food you are given and start developing an eating disorder called bulimia.
When choosing what to eat and reading the nutrition label, its hard to deny that what most if not all of us focus on is the amount of calories we would be consuming. However, it is important to look for the quantities of nutrients that are not only important but essential for growth including iron, calcium, vitamin A, vitamin C, and dietary fiber. However, its also important to avoid high quantities of trans and saturated fat, cholesterol, and sodium as these levels in your body must be monitored quite closely.