Niandre Woods

Emilia Grant
UWRT 1103
11/10/14
Some are born with it; others have to work harder to achieve it. Working hard includes
exorcising and most importantly eating healthy. Children seem to be full of energy and are
often told that they can eat whatever they want for the time being. It is said children have a
higher metabolism than adults thus adults tend to react faster to unhealthy diets. Even though
this concept may be true, how does healthy and unhealthy eating effect children before theyre
eighteen? This swings in the direction of the all mighty debate that will never be concluded
nature vs. nurture. High school athletes are only teenagers; those who stand out among their
peers in athleticism are required to participate in college athletics. From then on they are put
on a meal plan and are required to eat. If those outstanding athletes consumed a completely
unhealthy diet while growing up would their athletic genetics over ride their diet? Does an
unhealthy diet for a child provide risks for health problems in the future rather then
immediately? If a perfect diet was achieved all throughout ones childhood, would it result in
superior athletic ability? For years, people have been obese with food for survival and simply
from delicacy. Food consumption goes farther than just survival and taste, it determines the
health appearance and mental wellbeing of the human body. From the day one is born till
death food is the source of life.

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Food is necessary for the human body to function properly, food provides energy
vitamins and minerals. There are a myriad of foods each providing different amounts of energy.
In human food the amount of energy is measured in calories. Calories are necessary for bodily
functions to work properly like the heart beating or the lungs taking in air but are also
responsible for completing the daily tasks. Dieters often try to calculate how many calories they
consume each day because extra calories are stored as fat and if they cut down the amount of
calories they consume they are able to manage their weight. One gram of protein contains four
calories, a gram of a carbohydrate contains four calories and a gram of fat contains nine
calories. One usually reads the nutrition label on the back of foods or the nutrition posters at
restaurants to determine how many calories they consume, however by knowing how many
grams of each protein, carbohydrate and fat is in a food it is possible to calculate the number of
calories without a nutrition label. For childrens there isnt a magical number of calories that are
required each day but according to (Kids Health - the Web's Most Visited Site about Children's
Health) it is recommended that children consume at least 1600 to 2200 calories per day. As
children mature and reach puberty the need for calories increase. The need for calories also
increases along with the amount of physical activity a child partakes in because more calories
are burned during these activities and are required to be replenished. The body alerts the brain
that it is hungry by the feeling of hunger when the body is running low on calories but if too
many calories are consumed then the extra calories are stored as fat causing weight gain and so
forth. Theoretically if one wanted to gain weight they would eat more calories and if one
wanted to lose weight they would eat less. Too much calories stored as fat can cause obesity.
Obesity is calculated by (BMI) body mass index, which is the comparison of height to weight.
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This study of (BMI)s can be misleading because muscle weighs more than fat and a muscular
person would have an unhealthy (BMI) and still be unhealthy. Football player exploit both the
true advantages form studying the BMI of someone to the misleading part about BMI. Obese
football players are still considered athletes and play a major role in the sport. Other football
athletes also have a bad BMI on paper but in reality it because they have a really low percent
body fat. Football players are able to consume more calories than naturally desired because
they are constantly working out.
Different life styles account for different diets however within every diet there is
inevitable nutrients that the body requires besides just calories. Food comes in Carbohydrates
Fats and proteins and vitamins and minerals. It is recommended a taught at the early days of
public school that a balanced meal of protein carbohydrates and vegetables is healthy.
Carbohydrates are usually made up of bunch of glucose molecules joint together. It is essential
to consume many carbohydrates. Fats are also a nice source of energy because they contain
more calories per gram but this can also cause more fat to build inside the body. Protein is
essential for muscle growth. If an adolescent athlete is trying to grow in muscle mass they
would try to consume more protein before and after they workout. Vegetables contains
vitamins and minerals that help specific systems in the body stay healthy. For example, a
mineral found in signage Calcium, is necessary for proper bone development and strength.
Calcium is also found in milk , but milk contains a lot of unnecessary fat which causes the color
of milk to be white and lactose intolerate children are not able to drink milk and receive calcium
so it is a healthier option to use green vegetables like spinnage as a soure for calcium. Children
athletes consume plenty of calcium to maintain active in their sport. A vitamin for example,
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vitamin C is found in many citrus fruits such as oranges grapefruits and lemons and are essential
for a healthy immune system.
Most children that live in countries that provide public schools eat food provided by that
public school. Public school has a direct impact on the diets of majority of children across the
world because schools are responsible for educating schools about healthy eating and they are
responsible for the availability of healthy foods. Children may be in school for seven or more
hours each day. Seven hours is enough time for hunger to occur and children may consume
whatever is available to them. Public schools are trying to fix this problem by providing healthy
vending snacks to students, but this doesnt triumph the highly advertised unhealthy junk foods
that most children are familiar with and comfortable eating. A study was in new Zealand
recorded the amount of junk food consumed to the amount of fruits and vegetables that
students consumed to BMI and the overall atmosphere of the school about healthy eating. Our
ndings suggested that a positive school nutrition climate was associated with greater
consumption of fruits and vegetables by students, but the relationships with junk food
consumption and BMI were not signicant( The Social Environment of Schools and Adolescent
Nutrition) The studys shows that schools that have a stronger healthy eating atmosphere cause
students to consume more fruits and vegetables. This may because students are constantly
reminded of the facts about fruits and vegetables because the school makes a stronger effort in
educating students on healthy eating. Also schools with strong healthy eating atmospheres try
to influence students to eat fruits and vegetables as a social norm. If eating healthy is
considered normal more students are likely to follow this trend causing majority of a schools
population to eat healthy with a positive healthy atmosphere. However in the results of this
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study, junk food didnt correlate with BMI. This doesnt mean junk food doesnt effect a
students BMI, this statistic is flawed because children range from many sizes as they are
constantly growing. Students that consume junk food in the study was recorded by the amount
of snacks purchased by the students. There if the truly obese students do not partake in
purchasing junk food from the school the results will be flawed, also student athletes who stay
at school for a longer period of time may be in a natural need of calories and purchase the
available junk food to fulfill this desire. Even with the BMI flaw of the study the study concluded
with positive results, and if more schools make efforts to improve their healthy eating
atmosphere more children across the world will start eating healthier.
It is inaccurate to say that all athletes eat healthy diets. An athletes diet usually
depends on the sport they participate in. in football, being bigger faster and stronger is always
the goal. So entering college, college football programs usually put football players on a diet
high in protein and calories along with heavy weight lifting in order to build muscle mass and
weight. At this time it is okay for football players to consume these high calorie diets because
they are constantly working out and regulating the calories and nutrients being consumed. The
problem comes after a players football career ends. Football players are used to meals being
handed to them and never had to think hard about what to eat. After a football players career
is over they tend to stay on the same diet scheme that they have been eating their whole life
which now is an extremely unhealthy diet given that they arent actively participating in football
anymore. This trait is especial common in NFL athletes because they end their football career
with plenty of money giving them the power to eat whatever they want on demand. Footballs is
one of the few sports where it is possible to be successful if an athlete is obese. Offensive and
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defensive lineman are the sports most valued athletes but once their football career ends the
health problems from obesity starts rushing in. , offensive and defensive linemen had a 52
percent greater risk of dying from heart disease than the general population. (Study: NFL
Players Dying Young at Alarming Rate). It is hard for athletes that are already obese to change
their life style the built in dietary habits that have been implanted in them. This problem only
increases with time since the general population plea bigger is better, NFL athletes continue to
grow larger and larger. It is amazing to see athletes 300 pounds and more being able to run just
as fast if not faster than the smaller athletes but does the glory outweigh the health and quality
of life?
Other sports like wrestling, sports, and track, require healthier diets for athletes
because the sport involves maintain weight rather than constantly gaining weight. Wrestlers
diets arent always completely healthy because they tend to refrain from eating necessary
calories to lose weight can cause exhaustion and dehydration but in most cases wrestlers avoid
junk food and high calorie food because they cause the body to bloat. The stress to maintain
weight is good for athletes that partake in sports like wrestling because it builds healthy eating
habits and once their athletic career is over the are able to maintain their health.

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Citation page

Hargrove, Thomas. "Study: NFL Players Dying Young at Alarming Rate." ESPN.com. Scripps Howard News
Service, 31 Jan. 2006. Web. 10 Nov. 2014.

"Learning About Calories." Kids Health - the Web's Most Visited Site about Children's Health.
Ed. Mary L. Gavin. The Nemours Foundation, 01 Sept. 2013. Web. 09 Nov. 2014.
"Overweight and Obesity." KidsHealth - the Web's Most Visited Site about Children's Health.
Ed. Mary L. Gavin. The Nemours Foundation, 01 Oct. 2012. Web. 10 Nov. 2014.

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