Fueling Through Puberty Webinar Q&A

Body changes in puberty come with lots of questions, especially around food and health!  

In the “Fueling Through Puberty” webinar, Emily the “Period RD” provided a breakdown of what parents and caregivers can expect in puberty for both boys and girls, common nutrition concerns that arise and strategies to support their child, how intuitive eating is a powerful skillset during puberty, and the importance of building a healthy body image in growing kids! 

Y@HOME+ members can replay the webinar here. Read on below for answers to questions we ran out of time to answer!

My 11-year-old daughter really loves candy, how can I change that? 

It’s important to validate their desire to eat candy, while giving them the information they need to inform how it may affect how they feel. "Candy tastes really good! It's a pretty fast energy food, though, so maybe we'll have it with snack later so you're not too hungry and tired after you eat it!" Or, "I don't have any candy right now for you, but I'll add it to the grocery list so we can have it with snacks this week. Do you have one in specific you'd like?"

As a parent, you can make a plan with your child to include these foods, while also brainstorming ways to make it work better for them. This can be beneficial in educating kids around healthy eating habits (e.g., enjoying candy alongside other nutritious snacks, or enjoying it when there’s no high-intensity activities going on right after). And when foods like candy are more available and offered as equally as other foods, kids are less likely to eat them beyond comfortable fullness and can more confidently choose more variety in their snacks!