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Ideas to make sure you pack a Healthy Lunch Box
It's not easy packing a healthy school lunch day in and day out, especially for busy working parents.
We all know that we should pack a balanced lunch box that also has plenty of variety - but this is easier said than done. With a third of a child's total food intake for the day being consumed at school, it is important that the bulk of food included in your child's lunch box provides much needed nutrients, vitamins and minerals for energy and growth.
Wholegrains for energy
Carbohydrates
A good source of carbohydrate for energy should be a top priority and this is usually achievable with a sandwich, but there are now many other alternatives to the old fashioned 'ham and cheese sarnie'. For instance, a wrap made from flatbread such as Lavash or Lebanese bread - I notice you now even buy Naan Bread Wrap which my kids love. Cracker biscuits or rice and corn cakes make good snacks, especially when spread with some Vegemite! Wholegrain varieties of breads and cereals are digested more slowly than more
processed white varieties and are likely to keep children fuller for longer, so choose wholegrains wherever possible.
Proteins
Next we have to try and include protein and vegies. Health advice currently states that it is not a good idea to include ham every day, so try to provide a good variety of lean protein such as 97 per cent fat-free turkey, chicken, tinned tuna or salmon or low-fat cheese. The protein portion will keep your child full, help to maintain concentration levels through the afternoon lessons and help
prevent the four o'clock rush to the fridge when they get home.
Vegies
Also try to add some sort of salad to the sandwich. Salad and vegetables add fibre and bulk, which also helps to keep him or her full. Sometimes vegetables (such as cucumber) can end up making the sandwich soggy - lettuce, grated carrot, celery or capsicum can be better bets. You can always add the cucumber in the box in sticks with a nice dip.
Fruit
Always add one piece of fresh or dried fruit to your child's lunch box. My kids don't really like dried fruit but I am lucky that they will eat a whole box of chopped fresh fruit. Most children will eat fruit if they are hungry and there are no other more appealing "junk type" options available.
If fresh fruit just isn't an option, try getting it into their lunch box in a different way - small tins of fruit in natural juice, small packets of sultanas or dried apricots or even do as friend of mine does - give them the baby fruit jars! These are 100% natural and taste great - who cares that they are for babies? Her son loves them and he's 11!
Drinks
Water should always be the drink of choice. Fruit juices, cordials, flavoured waters and full strength soft drinks are very high in sugar and should not be consumed on a daily basis. Freeze water bottles the night before for hot summer days.
The Sweet Snack!
Failing to include a snack in your child's lunch box runs the risk of them swapping their fruit for more appealing packaged options. It doesn't have to be a chocolate bar, there are now numerous commercially available muesli bar but actually it's extremely easy to make your own. Any of the Food Magazine websites will have a recipe for muesli bars and they are so much better homemade.
Muffins are great in lunch boxes and the different combinations from a basic mixture are endless.
Other nutritious snack choices include reduced-fat flavoured milk, cheese sticks, yoghurt, cheese and crackers, mini-muffins and low-fat cookies.
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