Language

English

Publication Date

10-13-2025

Journal

Journal of Nutrition

DOI

10.1016/j.tjnut.2025.10.020

PMID

41093113

PMCID

PMC13000921

PubMedCentral® Posted Date

3-20-2026

PubMedCentral® Full Text Version

Author MSS

Abstract

Nutrition is critical to the health, development, and well-being of children and adolescents, operating through nutrients and the social and physical influences of dietary behaviors. Child and adolescent growth and development depend on complex biological systems interacting with the nutrition ecology. In this review, we focus on bidirectional interactions with the multilevel nutrition ecology, including distal systems (climate, geopolitical, and food systems) and proximal systems (community food options; health, social, and food services; and school policies and programs), all mediated by the family. Thus, the impact of nutrition on children's and adolescents' functional outcomes is dependent on understanding the multilevel nutrition ecology. Interdependencies between the nutrition ecology and children's health, development, and well-being have been examined during early childhood, with limited attention to corresponding relations among school-age children and adolescents. This age grouping represents 3 unique developmental phases: primary school-age (prepuberty; ∼5-9 y of age), early adolescence (puberty; ∼10-14 y of age), and late adolescence (postpuberty; ∼15-19 y of age). The 4-paper Biomarkers of Nutrition for Development: Knowledge Indicating Dietary Sufficiency: BOND-KIDS Project series builds the evidence for why and how an ecological approach is needed to assess and interpret the impact of interventions to improve the nutritional status and functional development of children and adolescents during these 3 developmental periods. This article synthesizes the environmental evidence underlying children's nutrition and responses to interventions, with specific attention to how distal and proximal environments impact nutrition and school-age children's and adolescents' functioning, including growth, physical and mental health, cognition, socioemotional development, physical activity, and school attendance and behavior.

Keywords

adolescents, BOND-KIDS, children, distal environment, the nutrition ecology, proximal environment

Published Open-Access

yes

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