Foods To Avoid and Limit

The American Dietetic Association (ADA) has officially endorsed vegetarianism, stating "appropriately planned vegetarian diets, including total vegetarian or vegan diets, are healthful, nutritionally adequate, and may provide health benefits in the prevention and treatment of certain diseases." Being a vegetarian teen, you need to follow a few extra guidelines about getting all of the nutrients you need particularly when it comes to protein and calcium, but almost the same basic rules apply for everyone about the foods that you should avoid. This is what the ADA means by saying vegetarian diets must be "appropriately planned". 

Foods to avoid:

•Saturated fats are fats derived from animal products, but can also be found in some plant-based sources like coconut and palm oil. These fats solidify at room temperature and are notorious for raising the bad cholesterol levels. You should try to avoid them as much as possible.    

              -Foods that tend to have saturated fats are bacon, sour cream, butter and coconut.
•Trans fats are technically unsaturated fat and they can raise the total and the bad cholesterol levels while lowering the good cholesterol levels. These fats are used to extend the shelf life of processed foods like cookies, cakes, french fries, etc. Any items that have "hydrogenated oil" very likely contains trans fats. 

              -Foods that tend to have trans fats are muffins, margarine, donuts, and fried foods.

•You should also try hard to avoid all sugary drinks, especially sort drinks. Soft drinks in limited quality are okay, but if you drink them too much they can lead to health issues such as tooth decay and dehydration. These soft drinks are loaded with sugar and attack the enamel throughout time. Even plain carbonated water is bad for you and the carbonation in soft drinks causes calcium loss in the bones, weakening them. In 2005, research showed a strong correlation between esophageal cancer and drinking beverages with carbonated drinks. Even diet soda is bad for you and can also increases your chances of obesity and other health related issues such as type 2 diabetes. 

               -Sugary drinks to avoid are sport drinks (Vitamin Water, Gatorade), fruit juices (orange juice, lemonade), sweetened teas, and sodas.

Even though these types of foods, drinks and fats are unhealthy for you, as long as you eat them in moderation, you should be fine. The key to healthy eating is moderation. So a splurge every now and then won't kill you but keep in mind regular eating of these foods will not help you to live a healthy long lifestyle.

Sources: http://www.hsph.harvard.edu/nutritionsource/what-should-you-eat/fats-and-cholesterol/index.html
http://www.mckinley.illinois.edu/Handouts/macronutrients.htm?referer=www.clickfind.com.au

http://parentingteens.about.com/od/nutrition/a/badfood_habits.htm

http://www.mindconnection.com/library/health/softdrinks.htm

http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/diet-soda/AN01732

http://cholesterol.about.com/od/cholesterolnutrition101/f/satfatfoods.htm