Many of us find good habits difficult to keep up or expensive to maintain. In school we notice many more sugary foods in lunchboxes than ever before and much larger portion sizes- often more than enough to feed an adult! We don't want to be super restrictive or act as the lunchbox police, but do want to help and signpost where we can in order to support good health both physically and emotionally.
Fizzy drinks, sweets and full sized chocolate bars are not permitted as part of your child's lunchbox so please do not include these.
Morning snack is a fruit, vegetables or crackers please.
Times are tough for many right now and some healthy packed lunch items can be expensive, but there are some budget friendly options out there.
The hot meal providers are working with us to provide a healthier hot meal selection.
Drinking enough is important. So, where a child is fussy, prioritising fluid intake will be a priority.
If you are worried about teeth, cordial can be gradually reduced by making it slightly weaker each week- so slowly that your child doesn't notice!
Fruit infuser bottles can be a healthier alternative to full sugar juice.
Fruit juice is fine with a meal, but best avoided for sipping throughout the day due to prolonged contact with the teeth.
Cut sugar with a swap!
Instead of chocolate, cake bars or pudding pots, consider:
a slice of malt loaf
a fruit teacake
sugar-free jelly with fruit
fresh or tinned fruit (in juice, not syrup) can add variety and own brands can cost as little as 50p spread over 2-3 meals.
Dried fruit like raisins can be cheaply bought in large bags and last ages as kids should only have a small handful as a portion!
Switch up the white bread for:
high fibre/ seeded crackers
wholemeal wraps
wholemeal pitta bread
cold pasta is a really cheap option- or hot if you have a thermal flask (add pesto or cream cheese for healthy fats if desired)
rice crackers with toppings
Ham, cheese, tuna or houmous are great alternatives to sweet fillings such as jam and chocolate- these are not great for the teeth.
Thermal flasks can be a great investment as last night's chilli or spaghetti bolognaise can be heated in the morning and will still be warm at lunch. Other popular keep warm meals are pasta, pesto with veg and soup.
Protein and fat are essential for growing kids. Here are some ways to add these to your child's lunchbox:
cheese sticks
houmous dip
mixed seeds and nuts (unless your school is nut-free)- a big bag goes a long way
boiled eggs
Mini breakfast omlettes
cream cheese dip or spread
Tuna- can be mixed with sweetcorn and mayonnaise and used as a filling for a wrap
Nutritional labels can be helpful. Looking particularly at the sugar and salt content plus the portion size. It's easy to forget that these are adult portion sizes so size down for the kids!
More information and ideas can be found on the change4life website and BBC goodfood.