ABSTRACT
As children develop and move through adolescence, they increasingly face choices that influence health and may become part of a long-term lifestyle. In their early years, children’s health-related choices may include preferences for particular foods, participation in physical activities, and the extent to which they engage in risky activities. Later in childhood and during adolescence, choices extend to the use of substances with health consequences such as tobacco, alcohol, and illicit drugs, as well as choices about sexual behaviors.
