Not to fund teenagers fussy diet.

[confusedalso]

My ds has been following some ex bodybuilder online and now wants to eat cuts of meat, 4 boiled eggs etc in his packed lunch.
He wants only fresh organic fruit and vegetables and has cut out all forms of sugar, gluten, dairy and any junk food or processed food.
He used to take sandwiches which are much cheaper and eat evening meals that the family eats but now he's reading all labels and refusing anything with a sauce or an ingredient he isn't eating at the moment.
AIBU to say I don't want to fund him eating like a king? he's eating so much meat that would have fed the whole family and I've never bought organic options before so the food bill has risen enormously at a time when the cost of living is high enough.
I understand him wanting a healthy lifestyle and that's good but I don't consider the meals I usually cook to be unhealthy but his diet is so restrictive.
He says he feels so much better on this diet but he doesn't have any food allergies it's purely a choice after following this ex bodybuilder on Facebook that advises people what to eat and what not to.
I feel as though his new lifestyle is somehow my problem because I have to change the way I've always shopped/cooked.

As with many PPs I think that setting a budget and getting him to explore a less restrictive and more plant based diet is a good idea -eg. eating the rainbow. Carbs are not the enemy, you need them for energy and for things like supporting good brain function. Batch cooking and freezing pulses works out cheaper than tins, and frozen fruit and vegetables can be more nutritious than fresh as they are not sitting around in warehouses and supermarket shelves.

Even without lots of exercise, teenage boys do eat a lot, but when you add in sports and gym activities you really do start to believe they have hollow legs!

🤣

I’ve spent years eating mess food. It’s far closer to mum cooking for a family of hollow-legged teens on a tight budget than wannabe influencer has been bodybuilder. Let not even talk about rat-packs.

That was the first thing that came to my mind too. The military aren't going to be serving food like that, especially to the lower ranks, and that £3/day/person budget isn't going to be buying much steak.

Just a word of caution OP...my brother suffered from an eating disorder in his late teens and twenties and this is exactly how it started. I would strongly discourage him carrying along this path and continuing to cut out food groups. People often forget that boys and men can also develop disordered eating.

Aside from the health aspects for a 16 year old who's still growing, it really doesn't seem fair for your other children/partner to pander to a 16 year old, by spending a far larger amount of the family food budget on him than the rest of the family.
I would also be concerned, whether you think he's sensible or not, on the influence of his peer group and steroids.

We’ll to be fair the hot diggity dogs sound good 😉

https://www.ramq.gouv.qc.ca/en/citizens/health-insurance/social-security-agreements-other-countries

Not sure where in Canada FIL lives, but is this any help ?

Wrong thread !

Tell him to search for a guy called Mike Israetel. He's funny as well so should probably connect with your Son.

It's a much more nuanced view of health and fitness despite being a jacked mass monster bodybuilder.

Layne Norton is another useful follow on Instagram in particular and he has a PHD in nutritional science and debunks all the idiots like Eddie Abbew and Paul Saladino.

I started moving towards being a vegetarian at that age and it was very much MY job not my mum/dad's to explain how we could change the family menu to accommodate what I wanted to eat (or avoid), and the eventual result was that I ended up doing the cooking for everyone about 3 nights a week.

I feel like you're coddling him a bit letting him dictate what you have to shop and cook for him - why can't he take more responsibility for himself?

Yes to the budget, but also yes to him cooking for himself/everyone - presumably not all this dude's recommendations cost millions of pounds, a teenage boy might demand steak (esp if he's not shelling out for it) but lots of other cheaper things sound acceptable e.g. omelettes, lentil curry, tofu, roasted vegetables and homemade hummus etc? There's no reason why your 16 year old who is hoping to be independent enough to join the Navy soon can't cook these things for himself and for all of you for a few meals a week.

What does it mean, do you know?

There's a bit of a clearer version of the menu here: https://twitter.com/hmssevern/status/1430778985332498432/photo/2

This. Or depending on age he can get a job to pay for the extra food. It’s not healthy to eat a lot of meat, he needs to do some more research using proper sources, not facebook.

I wonder if he'd eat faggots - from the butcher not those monstrosities made by Brains. Being pork and organ meat, they're packed with nutrients and they're a whole lot cheaper than steak. They're also filling and tasty.

^ this !

Both of these are science - driven, and have relevant PhDs as well as successful track records as athletes and coaches.

Another great source of information is Eric Helms (equally well-educated as MI and LN), he has a podcast called Iron Culture which is interesting and fun to listen to

As someone into bodybuilding myself i recommend you get him those packs of 10 large for less than £2 from home bargains.

Cuttingout/down on sugar and processed food is all fine, switching white rice and pasta for wholemeal again all good. Using healthy oils rather than veg/rapeseed/sunflower oil, again all good.

However, you have a budget and he isn't earning so a compromise is needed.

Budget protein options include tinned fish, especially mackerel in olive oil or brine at about a pound a tin. Nuts, lentils all good too.

I agree with pps you need to watch that this doesn't become an obsession and develop into an eating disorder.

My DS did exactly the same - Paul Salandino was the one he really liked

I gave him a budget and he was able to make it work, quite easily. Minced beef, liver, heart and eggs are all relatively cheap. Combined with honey and fruit, he has a good mix of carbs, protein and fat. There is no 'cutting out a whole food group' it is just that some people are insistent you need grains, he begs to differ. To put a finer and grosser point on the table to prove that I know this - his guts are so good that he doesn't even fart and never leaves any form of mess in the toilet - all of which are the ultimate sign his 'guts' are good.

To all those saying it is unhealthy, it really isn't unhealthy physically at all - how can eating whole foods be bad for you? It is so insane that people think teenagers should be eating junk to be normal. My DS is 18 now and still follows it, he is very healthy - clear skin, bright eyes and never ill (or depressed!)

Honestly, I am laughing so much at how people can say that is unhealthy when most teenagers are eating piles of crap every day and no one says a word about that.

The budget worked for me OP.

I always hoped no one would be stupid enough to take nutritional advice from Paul Saladino but sadly I was wrong.

I wanted to be veggie at his age. My Mum said fine but I'd have to cook it. I decided to continue eating meat.

So I'd give him a budget, and also request that he cooks for the family a few nights a week. I'd also take on board some of his ideas for cutting down on upf (swapping to wholemeal pasta, cooking pasta sauces from scratch, which are actually really easy, etc).

Go on cooking as you always do and he can eat what he wants of it.

"Extra protein intake also can lead to elevated blood lipids and heart disease because many high-protein foods you eat are high in total and saturated fat. Extra protein intake, which can tax the kidneys, poses an additional risk to people predisposed to kidney disease."

He has chosen a very unhealthy diet which could be detrimental to his long term health. Do not agree to doing this, any more than you would agree to him living entirely on sweets.

He is making a bad choice and you cannot facilitate this.

Cook as always, but buy a few more bits of fruit and veg - and brown rice to fill him up.

I don't see that going down well. Me personally would prefer steak and eggs over chickpeas and tofu. Love greek yogurt tho

@Vegetus there is a hint in your username that you might not be a fan of anyone eating meat

Live and let live eh?

Definitely some room for compromise. Spaghetti Bolognaise could easily fit into a healthy meal plan (where is the sugar coming from? If he’s worrying about the natural sugars in tomatoes, I’d definitely be worrying he’s following some dodgy influencers).

He has chosen a very unhealthy diet which could be detrimental to his long term health. Do not agree to doing this, any more than you would agree to him living entirely on sweets.

LOLs

I am sure you would be fine with him going vegan though right?

Your quote about protein is genuinely hilarious