Teenage Diets Should be Low in Fat

With all the different diet choices out there, many may be uncertain how to proceed when it comes to the best dietary habits. Yet a recent study shows that for teenagers in particular, a low-fat 2,000 calorie-a-day diet could be the most successful path towards a healthy future.

According to the study, researchers examined 224 participants from the HELENA (Healthy Lifestyle in Europe in Nutrition in Adolescence) study, which gathered over 3,500 volunteers. The HELENA study group's goal was to collect information on the children's heart health, physical activity levels and dietary habits. All participants involved in the study were adolescents who had their abdominal fat measured via a dual x-ray absorptiometry. Their physical activity levels and diets were also measured.

Researchers found that regardless of calorie consumption, the participant's individual intake of fat was tied to an increased rate of abdominal adiposity-a relationship that occurred independent to physical activity.

Unlike lower body fat, abdominal adiposity has been linked to an increased risk of risk of cardiovascular problems, including high blood pressure and cholesterol, as well as diabetes.

"Until now it was thought that even with an unbalanced diet, you somehow compensated for it if you got plenty of physical exercise. In this study we have shown that this is not the case," explained Idoia Labayen, PhD holder in Biology and Tenured Lecturer in Nutrition and Food Science at the UPV/EHU's Faculty of Pharmacy and lead researcher in the study, via Medical Xpress. "Despite the fact that physical activity is usually a prevention factor, in this particular case it is not able to counteract it."

More information regarding the study can be found via the journal Clinical Nutrition.