Page 204 - Nutrition Counseling and Education Skills: A Guide for Professionals

negative one. For example, many children and adults consider the word “diet” to be negatively associated with
weight and being fat. Therefore, use words such as “food plan,” “food choices,” “meal plan,” or “menu” to
indicate the type of foods the child should eat.

Professionals who counsel children in an office can create a warm, welcoming feeling by using color and
visual images to create an inviting space. The office environment can be made attractive with colorful food
models, magazine pictures, posters, food packages of commonly eaten foods, and beverage glasses of various
sizes and shapes.

Adolescents, Age 13 to 19 Years

Adolescence is a period of cognitive, physical, and psychosocial change. As teenagers experience these rapid
and unknown changes, they need to adjust their nutritional behaviors by increasing their healthy dietary habits
and decreasing those that are unhealthy.

Before a nutrition counselor can plan an educational session, the adolescent’s overall health must first be
assessed. This includes, but is not limited to, assessing the following: current body weight, weight fluctuation,
physical growth, timing of growth spurt, physiologic maturation, and activity level. Teenagers vary in rates of
physical growth, in the timing of the growth spurt, and in physical activity patterns. The growth spurt of most
adolescent girls occurs between 10 and 12 years of age. Adolescent boys, however, experience a growth spurt
typically 2 years later at ages 14 to 16. Rates of growth may vary among either gender because of external
influences such as poor diet, prenatal health conditions, or chronic illnesses. Physical activity patterns may also
vary. For example, teenagers who participate in sports engage in high levels of physical activity, whereas those
who frequently watch television or play video games are considered to engage in minimal to moderate activity.

The nutrition counselor must be familiar with the characteristics and external pressures that are associated
with the teenage years. Adolescence is a time of awkwardness, self-awareness, and experimentation. Take a
moment to recall your teenage years: suddenly, you are given more accountability and responsibility, yet you
are unable to fully exercise your new freedoms because you are still under the jurisdiction of your parents and
teachers. As you try to exert your independence and search for your identity, you are faced with the challenge
of balancing freedom with responsibility and personal preferences with authority. Do these thoughts sound
familiar? Many teens that nutrition professionals treat will be experiencing these internal conflicts and
emotions. In addition, they will be balancing the demands of their quasi-adult, yet quasi-child, environment
that includes school, friends, family, and even work. One of the most demanding issues is the hectic schedule
that many teens follow. Such schedules provide challenges to eating right as well as even having time to plan
when to eat. As a healthcare professional, it is imperative to keep these factors in mind when counseling
adolescents.

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