Diversity in your Lunch Box
As a new school year approaches, an old question arises, what to pack for school lunches to support our children’s rapid development and also meet their high-energy demands?
On average, school lunches provide around 26% of daily calories, not a small number if we think of their accumulative effect on a child’s weekly diet. It is also the meal that generally contains less nutritionally dense food such as leafy greens, whole grains, lean proteins, and healthy fats.
From ages 6 to 12 years, it is common to see a spike in children’s appetites, which can lead to more snacking between meals, making it even more important to offer a balanced school lunch that meets their growing demands. It is easy and convenient to default to “healthy” processed foods, in some cases unavoidably, as there is simply not time to do it all in the morning rush.
Parents are doing a great job though at providing alternatives to sugary foods and drinks, and the level of awareness on this topic is growing in the right direction. Schools are also playing their part by limiting or restricting access to overly processed, sugary foods, especially since the number of diabetic and obese children has tripled in Canada in the last 30 years, however there is room for improvement.
Children should consume less than 6 tsps. of sugar per day, or 5 % of their total energy intake, which averages around 60 calories. The over consumption of sugar could not only impact their weight, but it has also been linked to cognitive impairment, negative neuroplasticity: the brain’s ability to adapt to new environmental changes, risk of tooth decay, inflammation, sluggish immunity response, type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance.
Start Small.
It is easy to let enthusiasm carry us away and implement all of the ideas and tips we encounter about this topic, but children are rooted in routine, and changes need to be made gradually. Start small and expose them to a diversity of foods consistently and slowly.
Seemingly unrelated, but with great causative effect on hunger levels and a child’s readiness to eat their school lunch, is to provide a balanced breakfast that includes protein, healthy fats and fibre, and not only simple carbohydrates. These foods provide a steady source of energy without disrupting blood glucose levels too rapidly, which allows them to develop healthy hunger cues and willingness to eat their own lunches.
Protein is required for the formation of new muscle, organ and bone tissue. Fat is fundamental for brain health, hormone protection, and the increase of nutrient absorption. Fibre helps with longer satiety periods and helps to maintain a steady glucose level as it slows down the digestion of carbohydrates, which also have a very important role in providing the body the necessary energy for its demanding activities.
Worried about the best sources of these types of foods?
Don’t be. When we focus on providing a variety of foods we are generally providing a full spectrum of vitamins and minerals needed by our children’s bodies, albeit supplementation of certain vitamins and minerals might be necessary if following certain restrictive diets.
Simply DO your best to make DIVERSITY your best ally when designing your children’s plates. For example, pay attention to seasonal vegetables, they are high in nutrition and are most likely to be local, great qualities in a food. Branch out from the familiar whole grains like oats and quinoa to explore new options such as buckwheat, amaranth or millet and of course, make colour a fun element as well.
At the same time, consciously incorporate healthy fats such as coconut, almond, sunflower or pumpkin butters to the eating routine. Fibre such as, flax and chia can be added to fruit smoothies to minimize spikes in blood glucose levels. Lastly, protein can range from animal to plant based, according to your needs and beliefs.
”Back to School” can be a great opportunity to get your kids involved in the process of deciding what to eat and how to properly pack their own lunches. A few tips on this:
- Display a variety of foods on the kitchen counter and let them choose and pack their own lunch.
- Offer foods that you would like them to try, alongside foods they already love.
- Offer new foods in the morning and lunchtime.
- Develop a conversation around the idea that foods are neither good nor bad. They all have a place to be enjoyed.
- Avoid tension or stress when doing this lunch packing exercise. It might be helpful for you to play with the notion that it is your responsibility to provide the structure and the foods, and they can be responsible for what they choose to eat.
The main focus when providing a healthy, yet delicious school lunch resides in making the process fun, while providing the necessary foods for them to properly perform during their academic day. Consistency and not perfection is the name of the game.
Sources:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0149763418308613
https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/childhood-obesity/childhood-obesity.html
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212267220300654
https://www.cps.ca/en/documents/position/school-nutrition-support
https://www.healthlinkbc.ca/healthy-eating/schools-and-communitie