QUESTION 2 TERENGGANU TRIAL 2019

Some teenagers have poor eating habits. Discuss why this happens and suggest how teenagers should take care
of their health.
[ https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/the-causes-effects-and-solution-of-poor-nutrition-in-children/ ]
The Causes, Effects, and Solution of Poor Nutrition in Children
Food is a basic need that no man can live without, as survival depends on it. There are many kinds and types of
food and, as every other aspect in life, there is food that is good for the body and food that harms the body. What a
person chooses to eat, how a person nurtures his/her body, and how well decisions on what is being consumed are all
parts of a person’s eating habits. Unfortunately, many people suffer from poor eating habits where the options they
intake for food harm their bodies. For an adult, the benefits and costs of what he/she is eating are reasonably and easily
identified. However, for a child it is difficult to make a beneficial decision about eating habits. This essay discusses the
causes, effects, and proposed solution of poor eating habits among children.
According to Roblin (2007), it is hard to imagine that a child would sole handily choose how he/she shape their
eating habits. But, as any phenomena in the world there are underlying reasons that motivate and drive children to
demand or even deliberately consume food that is unhealthy. This is one way of considering a child’s eating habits as
poor; the quality of intake. Media happens to be a great cause behind the child obsession over junk food, unnecessary
sweets, and many other poor choices. Children demand the food that they see in the commercial and become very eager
to eat it more often, due to its favorable tastes. However, as a child it is hard to truly identify the great harms coming
from developing this poor eating habit. Commercials and television shows make such foods appealing as they are
seeking profit, uncaring about the negative effects it might cause. A child’s brain has not yet fully developed and the
media lures him/her to eat their products.
The second reason why children might develop poor eating happens, falls upon the parents. A child’s parent
can be the cause of this issue in two ways. The first way is when the parent him/herself neglects the child creating an
unbalance in food-intake timing. This can harm a child as not having a consistent meal time can have bad effects. This
is another way which is considered to be a poor eating habit. Parents might also be the cause of this problem happening
to their children when they suffer from it themselves. A child’s eating behavior and attitude is molded and influences
by their parents’ habits as well. When a child views that eating in such poor habit is normal, the imitation usually takes
place. Unable to make better judgments, the child grows up with these poor eating habits believing it is not harmful.
(Brown & Ogden, 2004)
Pollert, Kauffman, & Veilleux (2016) stated that, like all the problems in the world there are two sides of parts,
one happens to be the causes and the other is the effects. Causes are defined as the reason behind the alluring of getting
tangled in the issue. On the other side, the outcome that happens after the habit is adopted, either it is short or long term,
is known as the effect. The first effect that children can encounter due to poor eating habits is developing psychological
problems. Depression, anxiety, and low self-esteem due to poor body image are common psychological effects of poor
eating habits. Low self-esteem due to poor body image is a real issue as it later on develops into eating disorders that
only worsen the eating habit. Children from the age of 8 start developing anorexia due to the stresses they face from
rejection due to their body image. These effects can really break a child and cause permanent psychological damage.
The second effect that poor habits regarding food intake can cause among children is obesity. This is perhaps
one of the most common and famous effects that children who suffer from bad eating habits face. The larger issue
regarding obesity is the many health issues that are interrelated with it. Obesity can cause many physical health problems
can sometimes occur at young ages for children and sometime they develop as they get older. These problems include
liver, heart disease, diabetes, and irregular blood pressure. For a child, the functioning of the brain might also be affected
where some fats in the poor food children intake can worsen the brain’s ability to function in a proper way.
To prevent children from developing this problems many ways trying to fix or even cease the reasons and the
effects of poor eating habits have been carried out by many people. Different approaches all over the world have been
tried, yet the problem is still in existence. This indicates that the suggest solutions have failed to eliminate the problem.
One of the solutions was to reduce programs that enforce eating unhealthy and promote proper eating habits through
media. However, with a small amount of companies following this suggestion; no major effects have taken place.
Children’s mind-set can be very difficult to change especially when it is about something that is presented as a happiness
tool. Junk food, fast food, and sweets’ commercials have always and will always dominate the television commercial
and TV shows. Hence, the solution failed and children still suffer from bad eating habits. (Roblin, 2009)
 The solution, that might possibly work, is to change the behaviors of the parents. What a child eats and intakes
should be in full control of the parent. This also means that the parent has to be a positive influencer when it comes to
eating habits. Sessions for kids and their parents to bring them closer in the essence of creating a healthy lifestyle could
be a really good solution. In this way, both parent and child benefits with an additional benefit of the bond created over
a good habit.
To sum up, many children face the problem of eating food that is bad for them or even eating at times that are
not regular also causing negative consequences. Poor eating habits develops even in youth and it can be caused by more
than one reason. One of the reasons behind this problem amongst children is media. Television shows and commercial
view junks foods, sweets, and unhealthy food in a way that lures children to want to try them. The sweetness of their
taste makes the young attached to eating it. The other reason lies in the parents’ negligence where they either have poor
eating habits that their children imitate, they allow their children of having such habits, or they do not have regular
eating schedules for their children. This problem creates aftermaths for the children where they face consequences like
obesity. Children gaining weight puts them in risk of many physical disease at a very young age that can be very hard
to fix later on in life. Another effect that poor eating habits might cause to children is psychological problem, where
even the serious disorders such as anorexia start at a very young age. Media was a solution that did not work as it wasn’t
successfully implied as well as having more than double numbers of media commercial supporting unhealthy food.
Having to change the behavior of the parents might be a solution that could change the facts as it does not only benefit
the parent, but also the child and their bond.

[ https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/Teenagers-and-healthy-eating ]

Healthy eating tips for teenagers

Small changes can make a big impact. Try to:

- Cut back on sugary drinks like soft drinks and energy drinks. Sugar-free versions are okay to drink sometimes,
but sugar-free frizzy drinks are still acidic, which can have a negative effect on bone and dental health. Water
is the healthiest drink – try adding a slice of lemon, lime or orange for flavour.
- Keep a fruit bowl stocked at home for fast, low-kilojoule snacks.
- Eat breakfast every day so you’re less likely to snack on junk food at morning tea. A wholemeal or wholegrain
breakfast cereal that is low in sugar served with low-fat milk can provide plenty of vitamins, mineral and fibre.
Other fast and healthy options include yoghurt or wholemeal toast.
- Don’t skip lunch or dinner either.
- Help with the cooking and think up new ways to create healthy meals. Make those old family recipes lower in
fat by changing the cooking method – for example, grill, stir-fry, bake, boil or microwave, instead of deep frying.
- Reduce the size of your meals.
- Don’t add salt to your food.
- When eating out at chain fast food stores, check the kilojoules listed on the menu and choose the lower kilojoule
option.
- Don’t eat high-fat foods every time you visit a fast food outlet with your friends. Many of the popular fast food
chains now have healthier food choices on the menu.
- Change your meeting place. Rather than meeting up with your friends at the local takeaway shop, suggest a
food outlet that serves healthier foods, such as wholemeal rolls with vegetable fillings or sushi.

Change the way you think about food

There are lots of myths about healthy food. Don’t make food choices based on false beliefs. Suggestions include:

- Compare the prices of junk foods against the price of healthier food options to see that ‘healthy’ doesn’t have
to mean ‘expensive’.
 - Experiment with different foods and recipes. A meal cooked with fresh ingredients always beats a limp burger
or soggy chips.
- Try different ‘fast’ options like whole-wheat breakfast cereal, muesli, wholemeal bread, wholegrain muffins,
fruit, yoghurt or pasta.
- A single energy-dense meal may contain most of an adult’s daily kilojoule intake, and drinks can be high in
kilojoules too. So, when eating out, look for kilojoule labelling on menus and check before you choose.
- Don’t think that your diet has to be ‘all or nothing’. Eating well doesn’t mean you must be a health food freak.
A good diet allows for treats occasionally.

Change your eating environment

If you want to change your eating environment, try:

- lobbying your school canteen for healthier food choices

- asking your school canteen to include a range of low-price healthy food choices
- helping with the grocery shopping and choose fewer processed foods
- getting involved in cooking at home.

To get help

- Your general practitioner (GP)

- Dietitian
- Malaysian Dietitians’ Association

[ https://www.nestle.com.eg/en/nhw/health-wellness-tips/unhealthy-eating-habits ]

Many people fall into a daily routine that can include skipping breakfast, wolfing down an unhealthy lunch, grabbing
soda, chips, candy, donuts or coffee all day and gorging in the evening.

- Binging:
When foods are low in fiber and high in sugar or salt and partially hydrogenated trans fats the tendency is to
over-consume. When eating five to six small meals a day of high fibered fresh fruit, vegetables, whole grains,
legumes, seeds and nuts , the result is burning more calories and storing less fat because your body's thermal
effect is raised more frequently. Binging on refined processed foods is probably the greatest cause of obesity.

- Starving yourself:
Before and after binging comes starvation. Skip breakfast and your body has been "starving" for 12 to 18
hours resulting in over-eating again and causing your body to store much of the food as fat, as it cannot burn it
all for energy.

- Not knowing what you eat:

Most people do not pay much attention to how many low fiber calories and how much bad fat they consume
daily, especially if they eat often in restaurants. Those excess calories get stored as fat.

- Sugar, white flour, caffeine and simple carbohydrate:

Sugar raises blood sugar (glucose) levels, causing your body to produce insulin and changes your metabolic
rate. Those who eat a lot of white flour and sugar products, loaded with empty calories, will store more fat and
have a harder time burning it. Caffeine also raises the insulin levels, slowing down the fat burning process that
starts in the morning and slows down throughout the day. Eating simple sugar carbohydrates late in the day
 promotes fat storage and blood sugar swings. Eating high fiber whole foods as a late night snack can help
maintain a steady blood sugar level to give your body deep rest.

- Skipping breakfast:
Bet you thought your stomach tells you when you are full. It is actually your brain that signals your body it
has had enough food, taking about 20 minutes from the time you begin eating. By eating chewy foods in a
relaxed manner, you will be much less likely to overeat.

[ http://argutelegacy.blogspot.com/2018/04/c2-essay-eating-habits.html ]
Nowadays, teenagers seem to be suffering from a variety of eating disorders. On the one hand, obesity amongst the
young is at record levels while at the same time, anorexia nervosa is becoming more and more common, sometimes
with fatal results. Why have young people’s eating habits become so unbalanced? What could parents and teachers
do to ensure young people have healthier diets? Support your opinion with examples and explanations.

The pace of life is such in our days that our lifestyles have become hectic, stressful and a persistent race against
the clock. Nutrition, it would seem, is one area which has suffered as a result of this hustle and bustle of daily life, with
teenagers becoming susceptible to eating disorders such as obesity or anorexia. The causes behind such disorders are
not complicated to deduce, making solutions to these problems then become readily available.

To begin with, there are three main reasons why adolescents fall prey to eating disorders. The first is the pressure
put on their time which forces them to grab a quick bite instead of allowing them to sit down to a home-made, healthier
meal. Extra-curricular activities, mounds of assignments and text book pages to cover, pressure from their parents to
achieve high grades in school all contribute to less time available for nourishing meals. Add to this the fact that parents
are also chained to jobs which allow them little time to prepare nutritious lunches and dinners, and you end up with the
perfect formula for obesity.

Another related cause of unhealthy eating has to do with the availability of fast food. This extremely tasty kind
of food is present in almost every supermarket and diners selling it are found in practically all major cities and towns.
How can anyone resist the delicious burgers, hotdogs, tacos and pizzas that are effortlessly obtainable, speedily delivered
and in most cases reasonably priced? With so many additives and taste enhancers, teens are sure to get hooked and are
bound to become overweight leading some to become anorexic in order to combat the extra pounds this type of food
entails.

The final reason deals with anorexia and the images the media presents viewers with. Thin models prancing
about in adverts or on catwalks and magazine covers promoting extremely lean, almost skeletal bodies push teens to
compel themselves to look like the unattainable ideal image the media endorses, regardless if that body is dangerously
thin.
 To counterbalance all this, it is the job of teachers and parents to show youngsters the way. First off, parents
should budget their time and have meals prepared beforehand so that their children can take healthy, balanced lunches
with them to school or, if they expect not to be home by dinner, have home-cooked, ready-to-heat meals waiting in the
fridge. This will ensure that children have no excuse to complain about having to spend time cooking for themselves on
the one hand, while on the other a wholesome meal is guaranteed. Both parents and teachers should also talk freely
about body image, advertising gimmicks, the dangers of obesity, binge eating and purging by sitting down with their
children or students and watching documentaries on the topic or striking up heart-to-heart conversations. Schools should
even incorporate cooking lessons to demonstrate how just a few minutes of fun and creativity can give you the nutrients
you need to stay healthy, monitor your weight and give you energy. Last but not least, teachers and parents ought to set
a good example and eat healthily themselves, as no teen is likely to take an adult seriously when they see that adult
doing the precise opposite of what they preach.
Taking everything into account, once the causes of obesity, anorexia and other eating disorders become clear,
the ways to combat them also become evident. Teenagers must become aware of the dangers of eating unhealthy food
or purging to stay thin or else will have to face severe health issues in later life.

[ random elaborations ]
https://www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au/health/healthyliving/Teenagers-and-healthy-eating
- Junk food is poor fuel for teenage bodies and your body can’t run properly on poor fuel.
- Eating too much junk food can leave you feeling sluggish. Eating healthier will boost your vitality and help to
keep your skin clear. While a mid-life heart attack might seem too far away to be real, it may surprise you to
know that you could have health problems already. A poor diet can cause weight gain, high blood pressure,
constipation, fatigue and concentration problems – even when you’re young.
- A single energy-dense fast food meal may contain most of your daily kilojoule intake and drinks can be high
in kilojoules too. So, when eating out at chain fast food stores, look for kilojoule labelling on menus and
check before you choose.

[ https://www.livestrong.com/article/377585-a-healthy-lifestyle-for-teens/ ]

- Bad habits. Avoid bad habits -- including tobacco, drug and alcohol use. These products can have long-term
affects on your health. Tobacco not only smells bad and affected the people around you, but can lead to
serious conditions including lung and heart disease. Another concern for teenagers is the pressure to try
alcohol. KidsHealth.org indicates that 80 percent of teenagers have given alcohol a try. Alcohol impairs your
judgment, adds calories to your diet, can destroy relationships and can lead to liver problems. Drugs are
another temptation. Drugs problems can come in the form of inhalants, marijuana use or the abuse of
prescription drugs. Drugs abuse is dangerous for your mind and body, and overdosing on drugs can cause
long-term health effects or even death. If you think you have a substance or alcohol abuse problem, talk to a
trusted adult, parent or counselor.
- Sexual health. If you have made the decision to have sex as a teenager, make wise decisions regarding your
health. To avoid pregnancy and getting a sexually transmitted disease, use protection in the form of condoms,
birth control pills, shots, rings and patches, IUDs, diaphragms, spermicide or cervical caps. Remember that
prescription birth control methods do not protect you from sexually transmitted diseases. Talk to your doctor
about the birth control methods that are right for you. When you become sexually active, make a yearly trip to
your doctor for a checkup.
[ https://itspajohere.wordpress.com/2015/10/21/spm-essay-healthy-living-practicescontinuous-writing/ ]

The world community is now starting to realize the importance of adopting a healthy lifestyle in order to take good
care of yourself. Explain this healthy lifestyle practices.

A healthy lifestyle is associated with the concept of practicing a pattern of good life in one. Examples of this
include healthy lifestyle aspects of proper nutrition and practice of periodic exercises. The mass media has been many
times publish news about a healthy lifestyle as there is already a review stating that the rate of obesity among
Malaysians. Clearly, there are plenty of healthy lifestyle that can be practised by Malaysians.

Aspects of a balanced nutrition to be a decisive lead a healthy life. People have many times reminded that they
must take a proper diet in this popular, especially fruits and vegetables in their diet. A balanced diet ensures that the
body will receive all the nutrients it needs to ward off modern-day life filled with this problem. So, a good diet to
make one’s life a healthier human beings for a long time.

In addition, regular physician examination to guarantee a healthy life. This step is good for practiced some of
the inspections carried out by the doctor is able to obtain early detect any diseases that can threaten human life
anyway. The successful detection of disease at an early stage to ensure the means of prevention and treatment in detail
bring a positive impact to one’s health. Indeed, the attitude of consult with doctors to become one of the main features
to live a healthy life.

Not only a balanced diet and exercise that doctor but scheduled also played a major role in a healthy life.
Exercise every morning or afternoon sweating out of guarantee in abundance. This situation led to all toxic body out
and stress caused to continue to be removed. Therefore, exercise becomes an activity that is best to have one last good
lifestyle.

In fact, enough rest also play an important role in a healthy lifestyle. Humans must be unwind between 6-8
hours a day with quality sleep and also other common methods. Humans need a break because when it’s all over the
rest of the human body systems will be able to recover the capacity to make life at tomorrow morning. So, rest which
includes actions that differ from the norm which is done by a person that can provide energy recovery much needed by
the human body.

Aspects also must be a positive thinking mind if men want to have a healthy lifestyle. Positive thinking is
important because the life of the modern era so much stress in the Office and also at home together with a range of
sophisticated gadgets and tools. Those who understand themselves and see something the event with positive
perception is certainly capable of accepting the challenges of living with more mature yet rational. Indeed, a positive
mind only able to overcome the pressure of modern life that is so urgent.

In conclusion, all the steps above prove a healthy lifestyle can be achieved by human beings. Much needed
cooperation of all, particularly the awareness of yourself to make health a priority in life of all parties. Failure to act
promptly in future saw the searing hard hit by the illness of our society for the sake of diseases that can lead to adverse
impacts. The slogan of the body fit smart brain proves how important aspects of health in healthy man who wants to
lead.