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School Lunches Print E-mail
Written by Angelle Batten, HHC, MEd   
I think the biggest trap moms fall into when packing lunch for school is their frame of mind. Like anything else, we need to BE CREATIVE, think outside the box and avoid the PB & J trap. Think FRESH. Healthy lunches aren’t any different from a healthy breakfast, snack or dinner. The goal is to avoid processed flour products [most breads, crackers, cereals] and focus on health-promoting plant nutrients [fruits, vegetables, nuts, seeds, legumes, whole grains]. Meat and animal products can be a supporting player, but the colorful phytonutrients should be front & center.

For our child to be on top of his or her game at school - focused, enthusiastic, good behavior, healthy – REAL food needs to be fueling his or her body. A lunch with powerful protein, friendly fat, and colorful carbs is key.

What does that look like in a lunch box? A healthy protein might be nitrate-free deli meat, Sunbutter, cottage cheese, hard-boiled eggs or a black bean burrito. Healthy fats can include nuts, seeds, avocados or full-fat yogurt. A variety of whole grains and colorful fruits and vegetables provide complex carbohydrates as well as the phytonutrients for a healthy immune system. This combination of foods helps feed the brain for sustained focus and good behavior, as well as providing a stable source of energy. See Lunch Ideas for more examples.
 
A report in the December 2007 issue of the journal Review of Agriculture Economics analyzed food lunch sales in Minnesota schools to see if the schools serving healthier lunches served fewer meals. The knock on healthy school lunches has always been that kids prefer the unhealthy foods and if schools serve healthy lunches, kids won't eat them. Well guess what? Researchers found that schools that served the healthiest lunches did not see a fall off in demand from the students. In other words, kids will eat healthy school lunches.
 
When we pack a lunch of REAL foods, we eliminate fake food ingredients that set our children up to be less successful at school. When lunch items are loaded with sugar, artificial flavors, artificial colors like Red 40 and Yellow 5, and sweeteners like high fructose corn syrup, children’s bodies are burdened with processing chemical ingredients. The result? - poor focus, fatigue, hyperactivity, and weakened immunity.
 
Yellow 5, Red 40, and six other widely used artificial colorings are linked to hyperactivity and behavior problems in children. Whenever you see these and other artificial colors listed in the ingredients label, a good rule of thumb is to leave these products on the shelf. Choose an alternative without the harmful food dyes. See Petition to Ban the Use of Yellow 5 and Other Food Dyes to see references for the numerous scientific studies that show Yellow 5 and other food dyes can adversely affect the behavior of some children.

If, for cost or convenience your child is purchasing a school lunch, go over the menu ahead of time and choose which items your child is allowed to purchase. With your child, pick the healthiest lunch choices possible. Find out if your child is purchasing ala carte items, like 'fruit' roll-ups, chips, and other fake food. If you have questions about ingredients, contact your school and ask. (You might be surprised what's really in there!) Let your school know you'd like healthier choices made available. If you have children in middle school and high school, talk about healthy choices, as they have more opportunities to purchase fake food. It is important not to hand over your opportunity and responsibility for feeding your child to schools and day cares, unless absolutely necessary for cost reasons.
   
Remember to create a system that works when it comes to packing school lunches. Even Kindergartners and first graders can help you pack, while 2nd graders and older can pack their own lunches according to a checklist of appropriate options. Using Laptop Lunch Boxes or another similar lunchbox system will streamline your system for packing healthy lunches. Imagine that - one less thing for you to do! 
 
Angelle Batten, MEd. is a Holistic Health & Parenting Coach and co-founder of nourishMD. She teaches parents how to feed their children REAL food and parent in a more connected way every day - so despite a crazy busy life they can raise healthier, happier children who make the world a better place.