A few weeks ago I was having coffee with some of the girls I swim with. One of them asked, “Is butter chicken OK for my teenage boy? He’s so hungry all the time. It’s so hard to think of what to feed him.” Butter chicken isn’t the ideal food for anyone to fill up on. It’s more an occasional food. But what can we feed our teenage boys? Here’s part of a story I wrote for the New Zealand Healthy Food Guide earlier this year.

Teenage boys eat lots. Their body needs it for its rapid growth and to provide energy for all the activity they do. During teenage years almost half the adult skeleton is formed so they need plenty of bone building calcium – almost double their childhood needs. Muscles are growing and the brain is developing, especially the frontal lobe which is responsible for logical thinking, helping control emotions and thinking through the consequences of actions.

Teenage boys are constantly looking for food, hanging off the refrigerator door and peering into the pantry. They usually spend a good proportion of their money on food – and not at the fruit and vegetable shop! If you have instilled healthy eating habits in them during childhood, try not to fret if they seem to have abandoned all your good advice. Like trying on clothes they are trying on different behaviours as they form a new identity. You may not have much control over what they eat when out with friends (apart from limiting their money supply) but there’s plenty you can do at home to subtly direct them to healthy food choices.

• Stock the pantry and fridge with lots of healthy snacks which hungry boys can grab on the go.
• Keep a jug of water, dilute juice or weak cordial in the fridge to encourage fluids.
• At dinner, put extra ‘filler’ foods such as bread or pasta on the table for them to help themselves to.
• Set at least one or two times a week to eat dinner or breakfast as a family. Make it a fun time with no nagging about food.
• Teach boys how to cook some basic meals – baked potato in the microwave with baked beans and cheese topping, boiled eggs, pita bread pizza, pasta with a jar of pasta sauce, banana smoothie, popcorn.
• Encourage boys to be active every day. Sport and exercise encourages strong bones and is good for their social and mental health.
• Limit computer and TV time to less than two hours per day. A Canadian study found the key difference between overweight and non-overweight teenage boys was the amount of time spent in front of a TV, video or computer screen.