Marc Wellness International Blog

Next time you pack your child’s lunchbox, take a look inside. How many different options of foods have you given your little one and what is the ratio of healthy food to junk food?

“Researchers recently found 72 per cent of students had no vegetables or salad in their lunchbox, 24 per cent had less than one serve of fruit and only 34 per cent had one or more pieces of fruit packed in their schoolbag.”                                            That is saying that - ALMOST three-quarters of children do not have any salad or vegetables in their school lunchbox and almost half have too much junk food.

Check out the article with all the info http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,23047685-2702,00.html

With this latest study I thought it was important to help parents out with some lunchbox tips. So, when your kids go back to school this year what is going to be in their lunchbox?

Here are 4 tips to a healthy lunchbox for 2008:

1. Make it fun - place pieces of fruit such as strawberries in clear zip up bags and write a note or joke to your child on the front. This will make them excited about opening their lunchbox to see what note is left each day. Cut sandwiches in different shapes (quarters, circles, smily faces).

2. Make it colourful - ensure there are plenty of fruit and vegetables in their lunchbox so it is colourful and healthy: - such as a sandwich, with fruit salad, vege sticks (carrot, celery), piece of fruit/apple, juice, water.

3. Keep it healthy - cut up  pieces of fruit for your child so it is easy for them to eat. Such as watermelon (cut into cubes), apples (quarters), kiwi friut (circles), orange (quarters or peel the skin in a circle motion forming a long snake like ring that sits on the orange until your child is ready to eat it. Then they pull off the skin to eat the orange and the skin is in a snake ring - makes it fun for kids!)

4. Leave the junk out! - if you do not put junk food into your child’s lunchbox high chances are they won’t eat it! So ditch the junk and replace it with healthy foods such as fruit, vege sticks, yoghurt, cheese or healthy museli bars.