August 15, 2023
When it comes to teenagers and breakfast, it seems the biggest pain point for parents is not what their children are eating, it’s that they don’t want to eat at all first thing in the morning!
The experts and the parents we consulted with agreed there are three main reasons why teens don’t want breakfast: they are not hungry at that time of the day; they don’t have enough time to prepare and eat food; or they are dieting or dealing with body issues.
Children’s body clocks change as they get older – kids who were leaping out of bed at 6am when they were small grow into teenagers who go to bed late and find it hard to get up in the morning.
They stay in bed as long as they can, prioritising sleep over food, and are often rushing to get ready and leave on time. Sometimes they are heading out the door even before their body is ready to be awake, so it’s no wonder they don’t feel like eating or complain that breakfast makes them feel nauseous.
But with some help from parents in the Te Atatu Toasted whānau, we’ve compiled some tips that will help you ensure your teens are getting enough, healthy nutritious food without daily battles over the breakfast table.
If the reason your teen doesn’t want to eat breakfast is that they have body issues or feel peer pressure to be a certain weight, that can be more difficult to handle. Avoid making a big fuss over your child’s eating habits as you don’t want to further complicate their relationship with food. Role model healthy eating habits yourself, try talking to your teen one-to-one at a less busy time of the day when everyone is not stressed about getting out the door (making sure you listen to what they have to say), and if you have serious concerns for their health or wellbeing, talk to your GP or a school nurse or guidance counsellor.
Here are our tips for feeding late-rising teens who have either no time or little inclination to eat breakfast.
Hopefully some of these tips will work for your teenager and take the stress out of breakfast for you and your family.