Food for Thought: Your Child's Lunch- To Pack or not to Pack

It's a well-known fact that school-aged children who do not eat a nutritious breakfast or refuel with nutritious lunch during the middle of their school day lack focus, can be disruptive in class, and can oftentimes be very distracting to their fellow classmates.

Healthy lunch for children

Because kids are growing daily, they need the appropriate calories and nutritious value in their meals, especially breakfast and lunch, so that they can meet the demands of their growing bodies. If you need some help in decided what you should be packing in your child's lunch and what you should be keeping at the grocery store here is some help,

Lunchables or other pre-packaged lunch kits : Nutritionists call this “double packing” in that manufacturers have already packed the lunch and then you repack it into their lunch.  Most of these pre-packaged lunches contain lots of sodium and fat, along with very few nutrients.  These packaged meals leave kids feeling unfulfilled and therefore not refueled when it comes to tackling the rest of their day.

White bread : While sandwiches are a good choice for your child's lunch, if you are using white bread to make your sandwiches, then you are missing out on some significant nutritional value. Instead try some whole grain bread, with at least 3 grams of fiber per slice, so that your child gets more out of their sandwich than usual.

Fruit snacks : Fruit snacks are so very deceiving, they say they are made with real fruit, but they are made with fruit juice which is just sugar.  Plus, fruit snacks get lodged into your kid's teeth very easily leading to decay.  Choose an apple, orange or another healthy fruit for your child's lunch instead of those deceptive fruit snacks.

Soda : sure it's a no-brainer that you shouldn't be packing soda into your child's lunch, but still kids drink soda.  Soda is high in sugar, high in calories, and high in caffeine and that's about it!  Nutritionists are also weary of sports drinks, like Gatorade, because they are primarily sugar with some added salt. Milk or water is always best.