YoNaturals Healthy Lunch Box Tips
Posted by: yonaturals in UncategorizedThere are many ideas available to parents to make their child’s lunch box healthier. Instead of parents giving their child money to buy food at the cafeteria it is more sensible for parents to fill the child’s lunch box with delicious and nutritious foods. YoNaturals would like to offer some healthy lunch box tips for you and your family.
To provide the most nutrition, parents should be certain to include foods from at least three or four food groups. And in a typical week, they should give them a variety of foods. Some of the nutritious foods than can be included are low-fat yogurt, whole-grain crackers, hummus, sandwiches made with whole-grain bread, lean meats, crisp lettuce, light mayonnaise and they can be topped off with other vegetables such as sliced tomatoes or alfalfa sprouts.
It is also a good idea for parents to involve their child in the making of their lunches as well. This will make it more likely that the child will eat what they put in their lunch box. Parents should be there to guide them through the process and make certain that whole grains, proteins and produce are included in the lunches. But worst case scenario, if you forget to pack your children a healthy snack, make sure there’s a YoNaturals vending machine nearby, lest they fall prey to the junk food vendors.
The following are some healthy ideas to include in a child’s lunch box:
- Breads and crackers that are whole-grain
- Natural peanut butter
- Tuna fish packed in water
- Sliced raw vegetables such as tomatoes, carrots and celery
- Fresh fruits such as berries, apples, peaches and bananas
- Fresh 100% juices such as apple, orange or grape
- Water
- Herbal teas with a bit of honey
Most kids enjoy foods that are not so healthy and it is best to try to get them to try healthier versions of their old favorites such as:
- Natural potato chips or tortilla chips that are baked
- Trail mixes
- Raisins or dates
- small boxes of unsweetened cereals that are whole-grain
- Nuts such as almonds, pecans, pine nuts or soy nuts
- Sunflower or pumpkin seeds
There are ways to add variety too, peanut butter on a bagel makes a great lunch as well as chicken salad and whole grain crackers or sliced turkey pita bread sandwiches.
It is recommend that all dairy products should be low-fat including milk, yogurt and cheeses. Proteins should be lean as well such as turkey, roast beef, chicken and lean ham are great choices.
In short an ideal healthy lunch is a sandwich on whole wheat that contains lean meats such as tuna fish or turkey, a fruit, a vegetable and milk or 100% juice.
There are other ways to spice tuna or chicken salad by adding shredded carrots or chopped celery. Chopped grapes with diced chicken and light mayonnaise is also a tasty and healthy lunch idea. The standby favorite peanut butter sandwich can be sliced up with sliced apples or banana.
These are a just a few delicious and nutritious lunch ideas. The following are a few healthy snack ideas for the lunch box:
- Hummus and raw vegetables
- Cottage cheese and raw vegetables
- Pretzels with peanut butter
- Celery with peanut butter
- Low-fat muffins
- Energy bars
Healthy lunches should contain a variety of foods. Breads can include bagels, wraps, rolls or pita bread and all should be multi grain or whole wheat.
Meals should be easy to eat such as fruits and vegetables being cut into pieces for example apple’s cut into wedges, watermelon cut into cubes, kiwi slices oranges peeled and cut into quarters or celery or carrots cut into strips.
There are many other possibilities; parents must be creative to keep children interested in eating healthy lunches. We hope you’ve enjoyed this installment of YoNaturals Healthy Lunch Box Tips!
Author: Lisa Arnold