AI meal plans for teens cut 700 calories daily, risking stunted growth and eating disorders

AI Meal Plans Deliver Bad Nutrition Advice to Weight-Conscious Teens

As teens increasingly turn to AI for diet planning, a troubling pattern has emerged. Researchers at Istanbul Atlas University tested five popular AI chatbots—ChatGPT 4, Gemini 2.5 Pro, Bing Chat-5GPT, Claude 4.1, and Perplexity—and discovered they consistently generate dangerous diet advice that could harm adolescent health 1

1

. The study, published March 12 in Frontiers in Nutrition, found that AI-generated meal plans underestimate calorie requirements by an average of 695 calories per day compared to plans created by a registered dietician 2

2

.

Led by Dr. Ayşe Betül Bilen, assistant professor at Istanbul Atlas University's Faculty of Health Sciences, the research team prompted these AI tools to create three-day meal plans for four hypothetical 15-year-olds—two categorized as overweight and two as obese, with one male and one female in each category. The prompts included specific details about age, height, and weight, requesting plans that covered three meals and two snacks per day 4

4

.

Restrictive Diets for Teens Risk Critical Development

The caloric deficit of nearly 700 calories daily is equivalent to skipping an entire meal, creating a gap large enough to have serious clinical consequences during adolescence 2

2

. "Adolescence is a critical period for physical growth, bone development, and cognitive maturation," Bilen explained. "Lower energy and carbohydrate intake, combined with increased protein and fat ratios, may pose risks during the adolescent growth period" 2

2

.

Beyond the caloric deficit, the AI for diet planning demonstrated a consistent pattern of macronutrient imbalance. The chatbots recommended approximately 20 grams more protein than professional guidelines suggest, resulting in 21-24% of energy intake coming from protein. Lipid intake was also significantly elevated at 41-45% of total calories, while carbohydrates were drastically reduced by an average of 115 grams, accounting for only 32-36% of energy intake 2

2

. These ratios deviate sharply from recommendations by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, which suggest 30-35% of calories from lipids, 15-20% from protein, and 45-50% from carbohydrates 2

2

.

Unbalanced Meal Plans Threaten Bone Health and Hormonal Development

Registered dietician Taiya Bach from the University of Wisconsin-Madison's Department of Nutritional Sciences emphasized the unique nutritional demands of adolescence. "Adolescence is one of the big time periods of growth, next to infants. They need way more calories than a grown adult does," Bach told Gizmodo. "Even if you are overweight, you still have that growth piece, because a bunch of your calories are still going towards hormones and development and bone growth" 3

3

.

The lack of carbohydrates poses particular risks. "Basically, you need carbs to grow tall. Like, you need that for linear growth," Bach explained. "So, if you don't have enough carbs, then you could affect your height potential" 3

3

. For student athletes, the consequences multiply. Sotiria Everett, a clinical associate professor at Stony Brook University's Renaissance School of Medicine, warned that under-consuming calories can disrupt hormonal balance, potentially causing primary or secondary amenorrhea in female athletes and suppressing testosterone and estradiol production. Chronic caloric restriction can lead to Relative Energy Deficiency Syndrome (RED-S), associated with increased injury and fracture risk, poor athletic performance, and delayed puberty 3

3

.

Weight Loss for Teenagers Requires Professional Supervision

Stephanie Partridge, a public health and nutrition researcher at the University of Sydney, stressed that "young people should not be undertaking any sort of restrictive eating, unless it's in a supervised way with health professionals" 1

1

. Professional dieticians consider factors that neither teens nor AI tools typically account for, including health conditions, socioeconomic status, and family dynamics when creating diet plans or determining whether restrictive diets are appropriate at all 1

1

.

The risk of eating disorders looms particularly large. Teens following these restrictive diets could face higher risks of developing disordered eating behaviors 1

1

. Stephanie Kile, a registered dietician with Equip, a virtual outpatient program for treating eating disorders, has witnessed patients who trust chatbot advice over professional guidance. "I believe you, I just don't think it applies to me.... And that's why I side with the chatbot reasoning," she reports hearing from patients 1

1

.

Why AI Chatbots Lack Essential Nutrients and Calories in Diet Plans

The fundamental problem stems from how AI models function. "AI models are primarily trained to generate responses that appear plausible and user-friendly rather than clinically precise," Bilen noted. "Our findings suggest they may rely on generalized or popular diet patterns instead of fully integrating age-specific nutritional requirements" 4

4

. Even though guidelines from organizations like the Turkish Nutritional Guidelines and WHO Adolescent Nutritional Guidelines exist online, AI tools don't appear to base their output on these evidence-based resources 2

2

.

According to Pew Research Center, 64% of U.S. teens use AI chatbots, primarily for searching information and schoolwork assistance 1

1

. While reliable data on teens using AI specifically for meal planning remains limited, growing research shows teens use online tools like social media for health and diet information, with anecdotal evidence suggesting AI plays an increasing role in food choices 1

1

.

Bilen and her team hope their findings raise awareness about the limitations of AI tools in developing well-balanced meal plans and encourage development of safer tools aligned with professional guidelines. While AI models evolve rapidly, the researchers emphasize that these tools should serve as complementary aids in nutrition education rather than replacements for professional dietary counseling, particularly for vulnerable populations 2

2

. The study demonstrates that even open-ended prompts requesting general weight loss advice can yield potentially dangerous answers, extending beyond the documented cases of chatbots providing extreme recommendations like 600-calorie-per-day menus 1

1

.