Macronutrients

Carbohydrates

Carbohydrates are one of the most important macronutrients amongst active teenagers because they supply the person with fuel or energy. Carbohydrates are starches and sugars.

Carbohydrates are used for energy and long-term energy storage. At first, they are stored in your body as glycogen, but if it's not used within a certain time, and is kept in your body, it is then stored as fat (still a form of energy, but for activities that do not have a high level of intensity). There are two basic types of sugars. There are simple sugars, which are disaccharides, and complex carbohydrates, which are hundreds of monosaccharides joined together. Simple sugars are used as a quick source of energy because your body is able to absorbs these sugars quickly. Complex carbohydrates take longer for the body to break down because they are a combination of many simple sugars. So, your body ends up breaking these down a little at a time to provide energy over a longer period of time.

Complex carbohydrates should be consumed in larger amounts before a match or competition. Whereas simple sugars are better for post-game meals when the energy stores in the body are low.

The recommended daily intake of carbohydrates is 45-65%, however in teenagers that are active the number usually increases slightly. The amount increased depends on the person's level of activity.

Like with most foods, there are healthy choices and unhealthy ones. Some healthy examples of carbohydrates are pasta, fruits, vegetables, and grains like brown rice. Sweets and candies are also a form of carbohydrates because they are sugars, but they are not the healthiest choice of carbohydrates that you could choose to eat. The simple sugars would be the fruits and vegetables, and the complex carbohydrates would be things like the rice and pasta.

-http://www.mypyramid.gov/
-https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTYJWawm6ObINW66R9gDPNfvXIBmGIGjBxhXRJeVYXvggazmAa3AqvriU4DU0K4idv2cm7730hOiimpn_dNi9Htsz99OHbMeB15tCULpcpWf1kBU1BWlV3nXA1Xvqa9hGD_nrP0302cSo/s400/slow%252520carbs.jpg
-http://www.everydiet.org/wp-content/uploads/carbohydrates.jpg

Proteins

15% of the mass of an average person is made up of proteins. Muscle, cartilage, ligaments, skin and hair are mainly protein materials. As you can see, proteins are essential to us in a tremendous variety of different ways. Not only do protein molecules hold us together, they help our body working properly. For example, hormones are proteins. The protein that we digest from food is our main source of chemical building block needed to form our own protein molecules. Therefore, it is crucial that we contain protein in our diets.

Proteins are long chains that are made up of amino acids. There are 20 different types of amino acids, hence there are many different protein chains that we can build.

In order for our bodies to grow and maintain muscles, the recommended amount of protein for teens is about 45-60 grams per day. This amount can be easily met from eating meat or fish, and dairy. However, vegetarians need to be aware of their protein intake because they don't eat meats, which is a huge source of protein. Vegetarians can get their protein instead from foods like soy, beans, and nuts.

-http://www.helpguide.org/life/healthy_eating_children_teens.htm
-http://www.yourgenome.org/dgg/general/proteins/proteins_1.shtml
-http://resources.schoolscience.co.uk/Unilever/16-18/proteins/
-http://www.healthline.com/images/adam/big/19823.jpg

Fats

Fats are lipids. Fats are very important because they provide your body with energy for low intensity activities. Fats are also important because they help to insulate your body and protect your vital organs, muscles and bones. The recommended daily intake can be anywhere from 20-30% of your daily diet.

There are different types of fats. There are saturated fats, unsaturated fats, and trans fats.

Saturated fats are made up of tryglycerides. They don't have a double carbon bond and are not the healthy kind of fat, so you should try to limit that amount of saturated fat you consume everyday. If you consume too much saturated fats, you can develop heart problems, high blood pressure or diabetes. Examples of these are: red meats, egg yolks, cheese and butter.

Unsaturated fats are good for your health if, like all things, are eaten in moderation. Unsaturated fats are made up of monounsaturated and polyunsaturated substances. These substances, unlike the saturated fats, contain the double carbon bond. Unsaturated fats can lower your LDL cholesterol, this is a bad type of cholesterol. Some examples of these are olive oil, avocados, and almonds.
Trans fats are unnatural fat substances. On food labels you can find them as partially hydrogenated oils. This type of fat lowers the good cholesterol in your body which is HDL cholesterol. This can cause major heart problems in your body like heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.

Trans fats are unnatural fat substances. On food labels you can find them as partially hydrogenated oils. This type of fat lowers the good cholesterol in your body which is HDL cholesterol. This can cause major heart problems in your body like heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.

-http://www.mypyramid.gov/
-http://img4.cookinglight.com/i/2008/04/fats-types-0804p106-m.jpg?300:300
-http://4pack.files.wordpress.com/2009/10/donuts-saturated-fats.jpg?w=225&h=300
-http://img4.cookinglight.com/i/2007/08/0708p54-unsaturated-fats-l.jpg?400:400
-http://www.defendingfoodsafety.com/uploads/image/Fries%20-%20Trans%20Fats.jpg