According to health experts, the children of this generation are tipping the scales and raising the rate of obesity as we have never seen before.
It doesn’t take a brain-surgeon to know that much of the problem stems from lack of exercise, and high-fat food intake.
Starting today, and throughout the month of September, we will have ideas for healthy and fun recipes for school lunches, and after-school snacks.
To ensure “buy in” from your children, remember to never use the word “healthy”. This always conjures up in the minds of our children the taste of card-board, and social embarrassment. Let’s face it; many adults have the same challenge.
Here are some simple ideas and substitutes that your children may not even recognize:
1. The
Smoothie recipe listed in the Breakfast article
2. Switch to whole grain bread
3. To make fruit more exciting in the lunch-box, add some
yogurt for dipping the fruit into.
4. Switch to 1% or fat-free milk.
5. Instead of fat-filled chips, try using baked chips, pretzels, or bread sticks with a little cup of almond peanut butter for dipping.
6. Use 100% juice boxes instead of the others
7. Instead of bologna, switch to chicken, turkey, low-fat ham or roast-beef for sandwiches.
8. Add sliced green and/or red peppers, broccoli, or cherry-tomatoes to the child’s lunch. Again, include a dipping sauce such as low-fat ranch dressing, or home-made vinaigrette.
LUNCH-BOX IDEAS
1. Almost flatten a piece of whole grain bread with a rolling pin.
Spread almond peanut butter, nuts, and low-sugar jelly over bread.
Roll the bread from one end. Voila! Spiral you have a spiral sandwich!
You can also use low-fat meats, lettuce, and pickles. Same method, different ingredients.
2. Sandwich on a stick:
Cherry Tomatoes
Pickles
Low-Fat Meat
Lettuce
Grapes
Cubed Bread
Just skewer like a kabob. Great way to include fruits and veggies to a child’s lunch.
3. I know, I know. As if you have time for this — but kids love it!
Use cookie cutters to make different sandwich shapes. Somehow,
whatever is in the sandwich doesn’t matter when it is shaped like a
flower, pumpkin, or Bat-Man.
4. For variety, make a sandwich in pita bread
5. Don’t forget to occasionally add a note to let your child know you love
them, or write down a dumb knock-knock joke. They may think it is
goofy, but all of these years later, our children still remember the
underlying message — that they were loved and thought of.
