My tips for empty lunchboxes
Understand the importance of nutrition for your kids, and make sure they do too – children who understand why we insist on "5 a day" for example, are much more likely to embrace the concept of healthy eating.
My brood eat well, and are healthy most of the time – but I am in awe of families who have the time, energy and resources to prepare intricate lunchbox delights for their kids, every day. Like other parents, I lack time in the mornings – I juggle walking the dog, feeding the chickens, racing to the dairy to pick up more milk, finding hair ties and lost homework books, and hopefully running a brush through my own hair before going to work.
So how can you juggle the demands of a busy life, the increasing cost of basic foods, and potential ‘‘fussiness’’ in children, while still providing them with valuable nutrition that they are happy eating?
My tips (as a mother, not a nutritionist):
❚ Understand the importance of nutrition for your kids, and make sure they do too – children who understand why we insist on ‘‘5 a day’’ for example, are much more likely to embrace the concept of healthy eating. At a basic level, by ensuring they have a range of carbohydrates for energy, protein for strength and growth, vitamins and iron for general health, wellbeing and brain function, you are off to a good start. Look at minimising sugars and fats – essential for reducing their risk of obesity and diabetes, both of which are increasing alarmingly in modern day NZ. Often these ‘‘food baddies’’ are hidden, so I’d encourage you to show your child how to read and understand food labelling – you’d be amazed at the huge range of sugars and fats you can find in different types of crackers, yoghurt or juice. If you can, start their day with a good brekkie. This doesn’t need to be flash, but choosing cereals that are low in sugar (Weetbix, oats), lower-fat milk, or wholegrain bread for toast, is setting them up with the energy they need to get through the morning. For families where this isn’t possible, many schools now have breakfast clubs, where kids can fuel up before sitting down in class.
Children who don’t eat well during the school day, won’t perform. They lack energy, concentration and brain power and won’t learn at the same rate as their peers. If you are seeing the lunchbox come home each day, untouched (or like me, ‘‘cherry picked’’ so only the fruit and veges are left behind), talk to your child about it and find a solution. Maybe you are giving them foods they genuinely don’t like to eat; or maybe they are so busy playing they forget to sit and eat. Make the food simple, quick and easy to eat – a sandwich, wrap or roll they can eat on the go, is much more likely to be finished than a salad that requires sitting down with a fork or spoon.
Prepare ahead of time. Mornings are often chaotic, so trying to have food that you can cook during the weekend or evening, and pull out of the freezer or fridge every morning is a great way to ease the pressure. We do big batches of pikelets, egg and bacon pies, oat slice and muffins, and can usually get through most of the week before resorting to the less popular sandwich.
Only give kids water to drink at school, or milk if they have some way of keeping it cool. Many of the ‘‘empty’’ calories we consume (that contribute to obesity and tooth decay in children) come from poor drink choices. In fact, many schools are now becoming ‘‘water only’’ zones, a move I wholeheartedly support.
As far as possible, make the ‘‘carb’’ part of their lunch at home. Sandwiches or other offerings from bakeries or stores will contain far more fat and sugar than anything you will make, and end up costing way more. Buy fillings when they are on special at the supermarket, and freeze bread. For the other bits and pieces, I tend to add seasonal fruit and veges, home baking (which is much lower in sugar than store-bought), crackers and nuts.
And if you are still finding untouched food at the end of the day, borrow my ‘‘hard line’’ tactic – anything in the lunchbox that isn’t finished gets brought out at dinner time. It only takes one or two evenings when four of you sit down to a yummy pasta meal, and one has a dried-up cheese sandwich, before they see the virtue of fuelling up during the day.