Back-to-school is a time of transition and new beginnings, and it often brings a renewed motivation to get wellness habits back on track.
Packing lunches and
planning meals around extracurricular schedules can feel overwhelming and even mundane, but it’s a great opportunity to improve nutrition for the whole family.
Luckily,
Kroger’s dietitian team rounded up top tips for parents to help their kids eat healthy this school year – and the process doesn’t need to be boring or complicated. With these tips on healthy eating for kids (plus a little shopping and planning on your part) you can help feed those growing brains and bodies with the good stuff.
Top Tips for Making Healthy School Lunches
1. Every little bit (or bite!) counts
When your kids are
trying new foods (or not eating foods you’ve packed), remind yourself that even a single bite is success. Pressuring kids to eat often backfires. Instead, relish in the bite they did take or the fact that healthy foods made it into the lunch box. Also, if your kid is running out the door with a less-than-ideal meal (it’s going to happen), try to pair it with at least one nutritious option, like milk, yogurt, fruit, vegetables, whole-grains or lean proteins. It all adds up! -
Katy Keogh, MS, RDN, LD
2. Get the gadgets
The right lunch containers can offer more food options and make your life easier.
Food containers with divided sections, like bento boxes, make lunch easy to pack and easy to clean.
Insulated hot food thermoses provide the added option of hot meals. -
Taylor Newman, PhD, RDN, LDN
3. Time-savers
Shortcuts are always welcome! Consider buying pre-cut produce. Baby carrots and sliced watermelon are two healthy, kid friendly snacks that save time when packing lunches. -
Taylor Newman, PhD, RDN, LDN
4. Involve your kids
Include your children in
meal planning their lunches. You can provide options for each food group to ensure balanced meals, and they can select from two choices. For example, offer:
- Peanut butter and jelly or turkey sandwich
- Yogurt or cheese stick
- Banana or apple
- Broccoli with dip or celery with peanut butter
The kids can also help assemble snacks, like
homemade trail mix or yogurt parfaits. Take the participation a step further and bring the kids grocery shopping. Ask the kids to find different products from the shopping list. -
Sarah Limbert, RDN, LD, Molly Hembree, MS, RDN, LD & Emily Rider, RDN, LD
5. Lunch prepping
Consider
meal prepping for lunches. On Sunday evening, round up the kids for a fun lunch-packing session. Having
portioned options for lunches available to grab will help simplify chaotic mornings. Bonus: See if your kids can name three food groups that are included in their lunches. -
Sarah Limbert, RDN, LD
6. Dip it
Include a
dip for lunch. Dips can be a great way to increase intake of fruits and veggies, and they’re fun. A
Greek yogurt based dressing can be a nutritious and delicious option for raw vegetables. -
Laura Brown, MS, RDN, LD, ACSM-CPT
Make it easy for yourself. If you had
pasta the night before, include a small portion as part of the next day’s lunch. If there are leftover
vegetables from dinner, add those as a side dish. -
Laura Brown, MS, RDN, LD, ACSM-CPT
8. Play with food
To encourage having a fruit or vegetable at each meal, make it fun! Use small
cookie cutters to make fun shapes, or get creative with toothpicks, popsicle sticks or
skewers. -
Lisa McCune MS, MPH, RDN, LDN
9. Make visual pairs
Place sweet or salty treats next to fruits or vegetables so all options get equal visual attention. For example, instead of packing
chips in a separate bag outside of the bento box, place the chips in the bento box next to the fruit salad or baby carrots. -
Lisa McCune MS, MPH, RDN, LDN
10. Log it
Record favorite lunch ideas in one location for future reference. Whenever you find a new lunch idea that works for your family, write it down. If you’re stuck in a meal rut, you can always look at what's worked for you in the past. -
Emily Rider, RDN, LD
Dietitians are well versed in helping people hack their way to easier and tastier food ideas. If you need a little help in that area or more personalized food-as-medicine advice,
book a telenutrition appointment with any of our talented Kroger Health Dietitians.
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