Advice for Parents:
Adolescents

During puberty, a teen may begin to experience physical, psychological, emotional, and sexual changes. It marks the transition from childhood to adolescence and from adolescence to adulthood. To help you better understand, we’ve divided these different changes that happen during puberty into four categories.

Physical changes

Most physical changes that teenagers go through are essentially due to hormonal changes that are triggered during puberty. A teenager’s body thus begins to prepare to change into the body of an adult. Puberty usually begins between 9-16 years of age and usually ends between the ages of 18-22. It’s important to note that puberty doesn’t occur to each teenager at the same time, meaning that some will go through puberty earlier while others may go through it later. In a nutshell, sex hormones are responsible for the physical changes we see.  Testosterone is the hormone responsible for the changes in boys, while estrogen is responsible for that in girls. Excessive sweating, the appearance of acne and hair, among other things, are physical changes seen in both genders.  

Here is a list of changes that can appear for boys:

• shoulders and torso become broader

• voice changes

• hair growth begins to develop (torso, arms, face)

• genitals mature

• first erections appear.

Now, here is a list of changes that can appear for girls:

• breasts begin to develop

• menstrual period starts

• hips begin to widen.

*N.B.: Puberty appears to occur more quickly in girls than in boys.

Psychological and emotional changes

During adolescence, these changes and shifts aren’t just physical, teenagers also go through significant psychological changes. To be specific, they begin to question their identity and their need for independence. Teenagers are somewhat caught between their need for independence and their need to have their parents close by.

Additionally, adolescence is a time when friends become more important to them, which can cause some conflict between teenagers and their parents. Peer pressure can often lead to behavioural changes. At this age, teenagers feel untouchable and carefree as they desire to try new things that can sometimes be dangerous and harmful to their well-being. For example, youth are often tempted to try cigarettes, alcohol, drugs, driving, and risky sexual behaviour. Know that it’s important to monitor your teens and intervene if necessary. It’s also important to mention that hormonal changes can also have an impact on mood and, as a matter of fact, these changes in mood can be seen in teenagers.

If you are ever concerned about your teen’s mental health, please discuss the situation with a health care professional.

Sexual changes

Adolescence is a well-known period for a teenager’s first sexual experience. In fact, many teenagers will experience sex for the first time during adolescence. Hormonal and physical changes brought on by puberty make teenagers more aware of their sexuality. Don’t be afraid to talk about it with your teen. Here are some topics that would be important to discuss with your teen:

• consent

• menstrual periods

• nocturnal emissions

• contraception methods (condoms, IUD, birth control pills, vaginal ring, etc.)

• STIs

• healthy and unhealthy romantic relationships

• sexual assault.

Drugs and alcohol

During adolescence, it’s completely normal to be curious and try different things. However, you should know about the risks that come with this curiosity when it’s in relation to drugs and alcohol. Naturally, the consequences of drug and alcohol use are much less serious when they’re only used occasionally. With that being said, drug and alcohol use become a problem once it is a regular habit and plays an important part in your teen’s life. At this point, consumption could become a priority and lead to harmful consequences. In fact, regular consumption could lead to problems with their parents, their friends, at school, or at work. Your teen may also feel some psychological distress in the future. If your teen is feeling like they’re starting to lose control of their life, it’s important to curb their drug and alcohol usage and/or speak to a professional.

Please visit the Government of Canada website for more information.

Social media

Social media has become an essential part of our lives, something expected with the introduction of the Internet and new technology. One study discovered that 90% of adolescents are on social media. With this sizeable statistic, it goes without saying that we need to question the effects of social media on teenagers.

Another recent study determined that teens who use and become heavily involved in social media tend to have a poor quality of sleep, low self-esteem, and higher levels of anxiety and depression. To make matters worse, teenagers that use social media often face high beauty standards, due to the representations of slim women and muscular men. Exposure to these standards causes us to negatively compare ourselves and affects our  self-esteem. The same goes for any feedback we receive after posting a photo of ourselves on social media. To be more specific, if we receive positive feedback or likes on our post, we’ll feel great, however, if we don’t receive a lot of feedback or likes, it can have a negative impact on our self-esteem.

It’s clear that social media can quickly become harmful for a teenager if they seek approval or self-worth from their peers. Adolescence is a critical period for their self-esteem with all the changes that their body is experiencing. In other words, social media should never make them feel inferior or bad about themselves.

Here’s a list of popular social media/networks that young people use. You may want to discuss them with your teen:

• TikTok

• Snapchat

• YouTube

• Reddit

• WhatsApp

• Discord

• Instagram

• Facebook

Video games

Due to advancements in technology, children have access to different online platforms from such a young age, whether through their computer, game consoles, tablets, and more. On that note, an article by the Entertainment Software Association of Canada mentioned that teens have been spending more time playing video games since the COVID-19 pandemic started. It also mentioned that 85% of teenagers living in Quebec spend 14.5 hours per week playing video games and 75% of them admit feeling better after playing!

Video games are another form of social media. More precisely, teens can communicate, interact, and even form friendships with other players on these platforms. Here’s a list of popular video games played among teenagers:

• Roblox

• Minecraft

• Fortnite

• Twitch

• and many others.

Twitch is technically not a video game but rather a video platform that allows teens to share their screen while they play video games live.

Advantages and disadvantages of video games:

According to Tel-Jeunes, playing video games has some advantages, such as socializing, reflection, and learning. In most video games, teens come together and form groups of players and discussions. In addition, video games help them to develop the ability to solve problems and face different challenges. These games also help youth to develop their attention span and concentration.

What are the disadvantages then? Dedicating a good part of their time to playing video games may affect other positive lifestyle habits. For example, teens may start to move around less, go outside less, and even eat less! Over time, this may become harmful and affect other parts of their lives, such as school or their social life. Hence the importance of creating time limits; it’s not bad to play video games, but you should know how to set boundaries between healthy and unhealthy use. If your teen starts to neglect other parts of their life, it would be a good time for them to start questioning their video game usage.

If you notice your teenager playing video games online, you’re encouraged to ask questions and do your own research on it. You could then have conversations with your teen about games and the risks involved.

The importance of sleep

During adolescence, the body and the brain go through a rapid period of growth. Consequently, teenagers usually need more sleep.  Several research studies have shown that many teenagers don’t get enough sleep. They usually prefer to sleep late at night yet must wake up early the next day to go to school. This may lead to a lack of sleep and getting enough slumber s essential for brain development. Generally, teenagers should sleep 8-10 hours a night to be their best self during the day.

It’s important to know that a lack of sleep can be associated with other health issues. For example, they may have difficulty with memory, concentration, and motivation while at school. Plus, they’re more likely to have a collision or accident since they aren’t getting enough hours of sleep and are consequently drowsier and have a slower reaction time. Lastly, if they don’t sleep enough, they also run the risk of becoming more depressed.

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The importance of good nutrition

Adolescents need more nutrients during this period of constant growth. Their growing bones, hormonal changes, and developing organs and tissues need to absorb a diverse amount of nutrients, in addition to their brain developing simultaneously during this time. It’s important to note that the two main nutrients necessary for consumption during adolescence is calcium and iron. How can you ensure they’re getting a healthy dose of both? First off, they should eat three meals plus snacks every day. They must not skip any meals and should drink a significant amount of water. Secondly, they should be making healthy food choices. Choosing what to eat is one of the first set of decisions that a teen will make on their own. Though, it should be said that many teenagers don’t choose the best food to eat, which means some of them may not consume the right daily amount of vegetables, fruits, or whole grains. Some even go as far as to consume large amounts of processed food that are high in sugar, salt, and saturated fat.

With teens, you might find concerning eating habits, such as:

• skipping breakfast

• consuming processed foods in large quantities

• eating at fast food restaurants

• consuming an increasing amount of soft drinks.

If you’re worried about your child’s diet or appetite, please consult your doctor.

Social influence towards behaviour and choices

Adolescence is a period where teens create a self-identity. They learn who they are as a result of their experiences, and their friends become very important during this period. For many teenagers, pleasing others and feeling accepted become important.

The influence of friends

Friends can influence each other during adolescence, whether in relation to their choice of language, clothing style, music taste, sexuality, smoking, etc. Oftentimes, parents are led to believe that this can be a negative influence, but it can also be positive. For example, friends can influence a teenager to become more active by playing more sports.

The influence of friends becomes negative when:

• Teens begin to engage in behaviour that goes against their values, beliefs, etc.

• They feel obligated to do certain things or act a certain way in order to be accepted into a friend group

• They can’t refuse something out of fear of being ridiculed or rejected by their friends for ‘breaking the rules’.

If you’re concerned about the influence of your teen’s friends, don’t hesitate to discuss it with them.