Ireland’s food safety watchdog has issued its first dietary guidance for nine- to 18-year-olds, urging balanced nutrition during puberty and cautioning against protein powders and non-soya dairy alternatives.
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland has issued its first scientific dietary guidance tailored to adolescents aged nine to 18, setting out recommendations it says better reflect the rapid physical and hormonal changes of puberty. The authority said the new framework was developed by its scientific committee and is intended to give a stronger evidence base for supporting healthy growth at a stage when nutritional needs can differ sharply by age, sex, body size, activity level and the timing of puberty.
Speaking on RTÉ’s “Morning Ireland”, FSAI chief specialist in public health nutrition Mary Flynn said adolescence can begin earlier than many parents expect, with changes starting from around eight for girls and around 10 for boys. Flynn said teenagers are often growing into near-adult bodies while also facing major shifts in bone development, muscle mass and body composition, adding that there is a wide range in how quickly children mature and that dietary advice needs to allow for those differences.
The new guidance also pushes back against a number of popular food trends. According to the FSAI and reporting by the Irish Farmers Journal, The Journal and The Irish Times, plant-based dairy replacements are not recommended as direct substitutes for milk, yoghurt and cheese because they do not provide the same levels of key nutrients, including protein and calcium. The guidance instead recommends four to five daily servings from the dairy group to help meet calcium needs, while calcium-fortified soya drinks are presented as the main alternative where dairy is not consumed.
The authority also says teenagers do not need protein powders, shakes or similar supplement drinks to meet protein requirements. That warning is aimed in part at highly active young people, including those training hard across the week and weekend, whom Flynn said may be eating too little carbohydrate and too much focus on protein. She argued that carbohydrates remain an important energy source for adolescents and that poor balance in the diet can leave some young athletes more vulnerable to injury, a concern echoed in the reports that accompanied the new guidance.
Disclaimer: This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical judgment, advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
