Lunch Box Lessons
By: Sarah Remmer, RD, CDE
It’s that time again! School’s back in and lunches are being packed! As our kiddies rush off to class, they should have a healthy lunch in their backpacks—with food that they’ll actually eat!
Let’s be honest, most kids won’t chow down on a bunch of cut up raw veggies or a big salad, so let’s make healthy fun, easy and yummy for our kids this year!
Get your kids involved, starting at the grocery store!
Get your kids to help you build your grocery list for the week—ask for their input on what to buy (within reason of course). Give them structured choice. For example, let them choose what kinds of veggies they want, making sure that they chose a new one every month or so to try.
Recruit your kids to help make their lunches. Kids are much more likely to eat their lunch if they have input and if they have a hand in making it. One way to do this is to decide what the main part of their lunch will be. Maybe it’s homemade leftover Hawaiian pizza. Let your kids build the rest of their lunch around that main food. For example, they may choose to pair their pizza with vegetable soup and an apple, OR raw cucumber and frozen berries. If your kids have structured options (perhaps 3 items to chose from), they have some power over what they eat, which increases the chances of them eating it!
Think in terms of 3’s for balance:
Some families follow Canada’s Food Guide to Healthy Eating and make sure that their kids have one item out of each food group (whole grains, veggies and fruit, meat or alternative and milk or alternative) in their lunch. This is a great way to ensure that their lunches are jam-packed full of nutrition.
I simplify this by teaching my clients to make sure that their kid’s lunches contain at least 3 components. Those three components are: Whole Grains, veggies and/or fruit, and a good source of Protein. Protein foods come from the meat and alternatives group and/or milk or alternatives group. If your kids know this, it will make it easier for them (and you) to build their lunch every day. You’re giving them some choice and power, but it’s somewhat structured to ensure balance.
Some fun, healthy examples are:
A yogurt Parfait: plain yogurt, cut up fruit or berries, mixed nuts or seeds, a drizzle of maple syrup, and low fat granola). You can pack all of these ingredients into separate containers and your child can build their parfait at school. It’s fun, balanced and super easy!
Another example is tuna salad (or a flavored mini can of tuna), whole grain crackers and raw carrot sticks and celery with dip.
Or try a Nibbly Lunch: grab a plastic container with a few compartments and fill them with hummus, salsa, and guacamole. Also pack 2 baggies with mini pitas and raw veggies for dipping.
Or, Homemade Lunchables: whole grain crackers, nitrate/nitrite free deli meats (you can now find these in regular grocery stores), and cheese. Add some cut up raw veggies and/or a piece of fruit and you’ve got a great lunch! Here is a tool for you to use with your kids to create meal balance (this list is quite limited, but it’s a good start!):
Sarah had a thorough and professional approach to assessing my nutritional habits. After consulting with her I have gained a much better understanding of maintaining a healthy diet for my active lifestyle.
Top qualities: Great Results, Personable, Expert
Tom Andreson