Healthy Lunch Ideas For Healthy Kids!

via youtube.com

This is a great video looking at things being done in the bay area to help kids eat more healthily. Whether you are looking for healthy lunch ideas or any other type of inspiration, it's worth watching!

Healthy Lunch Ideas - Try Mandarin Jelly

via youtube.com

When coming up with healthy lunch ideas it's important to introduce your kids to something new. So watch this great video for making Mandarin Jelly and give your kids a sweet treat!

Healthy Lunch Ideas For Camping

While food safety is important any time of year, proper food handling is essential for summer meals, especially when away from your home kitchen. Since any food-related illness can spoil a camping trip or family vacation, it is worth being extra careful with food in the summer. Fortunately, you can help keep food safe with four simple steps.

What we know

• Food-related illness is under-reported and misunderstood: One in six Americans get sick from a food-related illness every year. Many of them blame it on the flu or other “bug."

• Looking, smelling, and tasting are not accurate ways to check if food is safe to eat:Food can look, smell, and taste fine - and be full of bacteria that make you very sick.

• Food safety involves four key steps: Any perishable food can be a place for disease-causing bacteria to grow. Visit www.homefoodsafety.org to learn more about the problem and, more importantly, the solutions!

What you can do

1: CLEAN - Wash hands often.

• When water is available, use biodegradable soap. Rub hands together for at least 20 seconds, scrubbing all parts thoroughly. Rinse with water and dry with paper towels.

• If water is not readily available, carry plenty of hand sanitizer and disposable wipes for cleaning hands carefully and often (before/after eating, touching animals, etc.).

2: SEPARATE - Keep raw meats and ready-to-eat foods separate.

• Cross contamination can occur in coolers, especially when juices from raw meat or poultry drip onto other foods. Double-wrap all meat products in sealable plastic bags.

• When preparing meat/poultry/fish for grilling, use separate dishes and utensils. Wash carefully before using the same items for cooked meats or other foods.

3: COOK - Cook to proper temperatures.

• Always use a digital or dial food thermometer in your camp kitchen. Ensure all that ground meat is safe to eat by cooking patties to an internal temperature of 160 °F.

• Cook all other beef/veal/pork/lamb/wild game to a minimum internal temperature of 145 °F. Cook all poultry to a safe minimum internal temperature of 165 °F.

4: CHILL - Refrigerate all perishables promptly to 40 °F or below.

• Take plenty of cold power (ice blocks, water frozen in plastic milk jugs, or gel packs) to keep cold foods COLD. In camp, keep the cooler in shade or covered with a tarp.

• Put ALL perishable and cooked foods into a cooler after 2 hours. For more tips, visit www.fsis.usda.gov/factsheets/food_safety_while_hiking_camping_&_boating/index.asp#9.

via eatwellatschool.blogspot.com

Food safety is an essential part of making sure your kids eat great, nutritious, healthy food. So when you are coming up with healthy lunch ideas for your camping trip, remember these rules!

Healthy Lunch Ideas For Sweet Treats

Lunch Time Dessert: Baby Black Bean Brownies

Whether you homeschool, or send kids to school (or even if they aren’t old enough for school) kids like an after lunch treat. Heck, I like an afternoon treat!  These black bean brownies make a great dessert for something  a little sweet to finish off a healthy meal. 

The reason I like these black bean brownies is you don’t have to puree the beans before adding them to the mix.  Who wants to spend all that time in the kitchen anyway, right?  I promise you, the beans blend right in with the rich chocolate taste of the brownies, that no one will be complaining.

One Tip: If you are using canned beans, make sure to rinse them thoroughly!  Hot water is ideal.  Get all the sodium rinsed off that you can!

For lunch, try a chicken salad (shredded chicken, strawberries, chopped pecans, and salad greens), some rolled up flat bread, and a mini, bite sized brownie.

Black Bean Brownies Recipe:

• 1 15 ounce can of black beans, or 1 1/2 cups pre cooked black beans.
• 1/2 cup cocoa (100%)
• 1/4 cup coconut oil
• 1/2 cup honey
• 1 tsp. vanilla
• 3 eggs
• 1/2 cup flour
• 1/4 tsp. salt

For directions to make the dessert follow the link...

via blog.superhealthykids.com

We often forget, when we are coming up with healthy lunch ideas, about one of the most important meals... dessert! Make sure you give your little ones a sweet treat full of goodness!

Brown Rice For Your Healthy Lunch Ideas

Leftover Brown Rice Breakfast Pudding

I want to use more whole grains around here beyond whole wheat. There are so many other delicious whole grains with different nutrients that can be of benefit to our family.  One easy to prepare whole grain is brown rice.  While rice is common on most dinner tables, it’s also great for breakfast.  Rice is also great because

• it stores well,
• few kids have sensitivity to it,
• it’s super cheap, and
• it makes great leftovers!

If there are ever ways to repurpose leftovers, I will use them!

So, here it is:

• Take 2 cups cooked brown rice, reheated.
• In a blender, blend up

• 1/2 cup vanilla soy milk (or low fat milk with 1 tsp. vanilla extract)
• 1/2 cup berries (strawberries)
• 1 tsp. honey or agave

Mix the milk and berries with your warmed up brown rice. 

Let sit for 5 minutes to absorb

Top with extra berries or other fruit.

Makes 4, 1/2 cup servings.

Keep reading for nutritional information...

via blog.superhealthykids.com

This is one of my favourite healthy lunch ideas. It's easy to make and super scrummy. Best of all rice is something your kids will be familiar with, so it's an easy one to introduce!

Healthykidshealthyfamilies: Veggies: The Whens, Wheres, and Hows of Encouraging More Veggie Consumption

Veggies: The Whens, Wheres, and Hows of Encouraging More Veggie Consumption

I am always playing with how to mix things up and get the kids at our table to eat more veggies. As I said in "Veggies First", offering veggies as an appetizer is a great way to curb the 5 o'clock hunger pains and get veggies in their bellies. But there are a couple of other tricks that have been working great in our family this past year.

1. Veggies as the first course....
This is bringing us back again to a time when meals were much slower, had smaller portions and typically had a vegetable course at the beginning of the meal. In our house we are invoking this time by offering a little bit of salad first to the kids or small bowls of soup. The salads have been elaborate with my homemade dressing and they have also been super simple chopped up cukes with tomatoes and my daughter's favorite food - ranch dressing.

2. Small portions....
Kids are turned off when their plates have heaping servings of vegetables. It is our attempt to get them to eat more vegetables but it backfires all the time. Try a very small portion size of EVERYTHING on their plates, including the veggies. This is an odd suggestion but I have tested it out on my kids, all their friends and my friend's kids. Serve them one bit of chicken along with 5 peas, it intrigues them and they eat all the peas. Serve them three bits of chicken and a pile of peas, they eat the chicken and leave the peas. Smaller portions work but make sure all the foods are a smaller portion, they can always have more.

3. Any time/All the time....
The more veggies that are served, the more kids are exposed to them, the more they eat. There are studies documenting kids in immigrant families, in the US, whose families eat vegetables at breakfast. These kids eat more vegetables than other US kids, even if the remainder of their diet is fairly Americanized. Serve tomatoes with breakfast on their buttered toast, serve sliced cucumber on the side, carrots with cream cheese and anything else that is a favorite (My son just suggested a microwaved potato with butter and salt). Keep vegetables in all the lunches and snacks, too. Again, make portion sizes small.

4. Match the competition....
Vegetables are up against rough competition that doesn't play fair, they are fighting against Cheetos, super sweet yogurts, rich cheeses, salty crackers, etc. to try and get your kid's attention. These foods are creating a taste palate in kids that is hard for vegetables to compete against. Kids and adults will typically choose the foods that are richer, saltier and/or sweeter over the plain taste of vegetables. So....don't be shy, go ahead and flavor the vegetables. Vegetables can compete if they are straight from the garden but most of the time that isn't an option. Veggies just need a little help. Using salt, sugar, a little cheese or butter is not a sin and it will make the kids like the veg more.

via healthykidshealthyfamilies.blogspot.com

Healthy Lunch Ideas For Back To School

Welcome back to school! We hope that your summer provided a renewed energy for a wonderful school year! Healthy Kids Challenge wants to serve as your partner in health this year to bring health and wellness ALIVE. Whether your needs are nutrition education curriculum, staff training, wellness council support or resources, look to HKC for solutions!

The new school year is a great time to gather an existing wellness team or build a new team! Team up for wellness with the following Healthy Kids Challenge tips.

1. Get people on board
   1. Begin recruiting those who have expressed or demonstrated an interest in nutrition and physical activity. Start with whatever number of members you can.
   2. Brainstorm potential recruits who represent different groups: administrators, classroom teachers, youth leaders, PE teachers, nurses, food service, community members and families
.
2. Develop a team vision:
   1. Brainstorm the team’s wellness dream and then write a short memorable statement describing the dream.
   2. Vision example: A school/youth program that provides a healthy environment with consistent messages that guide learning and opportunities for practicing healthy lifestyle choices; and connects with families and the community to expand the messages and healthy choices everywhere kids go.
3. Share the team vision and develop awareness:
   1. Identify ways to let others know of the vision through newsletters, Web site and word of mouth
   2. Use “talking points” for nutrition and physical activity:
      1. the needs (childhood obesity, poor eating and physical activity habits of kids)
      2. the benefits (improved academic potential, better attendance)
      3. what you intend to accomplish (awareness and appeal for HKC’s Healthy6 messages, increased role-modeling)

Getting involved in healthy kids eating challenged is a great way to connect with other parents looking for healthy lunch ideas. Getting kids to eat better as a community will have beneficial and long lasting effects.

Healthy Lunch Ideas To End Childhood Obesity

The percentage of overweight kids has grown from a problem to an epidemic today. The America Academy of Pediatrics has given various reasons for this increase in the number of overweight children. One issue is the fact that parents have less time than previously and find it easier to provide kids with convenience and fast foods.

Kids encouraged to eat junk food would rather have potato chips, French fries or deep fried meat than a healthy alternative. This is often not helped by the poor state of school lunches. They contain processed and convenience foods with chemicals and additives, similar to fast food restaurants.

A worse scenario is major soft drink companies promoting their unhealthy beverages all over America. Schools readily allow them access to children because they provide funding for their athletic and recreational programs. Today more franchise fast food and zero nutrition soft drinks are available to kids in school than ever before. This is 100% damaging the health of our children.

The ADA has acknowledged the fact that kids are not consuming enough of the vegetables and fruits that prevent heart diseases and help kids have a healthy weight. Parents should be concerned about what their kids are consuming at school and should encourage them to make their own healthy lunches and snacks.

The number one thing parents should do is contact school boards and inform them of this issue. Children who don’t participate in sports usually consume more and eating from the unhealthy school cafeteria menus is seriously injurious to their growth. School lunch menus should carry fresh produce and baked meat and potatoes rather fried.

Second, Parents should educate children about the benefits of vegetables, fruits, dairy products and whole wheat foods. You should try to push these nutrients in small proportions since children will avoid large servings at first. The more parents get involved the better the situation gets for the children.

Involving children in choosing, preparing and packing their lunch is essential to developing good healthy eating habits. Let the kids choose their favorite vegetables, dairy products and fruits and learn what they like most and what they don’t.

Usually, overweight children enjoy lots of sweets and fattening fast foods. The difficult task is to eliminate this eating pattern and stop them eating unhealthy food permanently. Prepare healthy snacks for them to consume all day, keep them easily accessible and make sure sweets are consumed as a treat not a meal. Snacks with fruits, cream cheese, vegetables with hummus dip, whole wheat cereals and bread are excellent choices for children who are plagued with obesity.

Unhealthy eating patterns continue from generation to generation, so by developing healthy lunch ideas you are actually helping the health of your grand-children and great grand-children!

Click here to view rest of article from original site

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via healthyfoodbest.com

We all know the statistics and the reasons why our kid's nutrition is so important, but sometimes that knowledge can be overwhelming. The great news is just by using a few healthy lunch ideas during the week you can start the path to a better life for your child.

Healthy Lunch Ideas To Cook With Kids

There are so many benefits to involving your children in cooking family meals from the earliest of ages. They eat a wider variety of foods when they help prepare them; it's a fun bonding activity; and the older they get, they actually help with the process. Of course, getting to that point isn't always without spills or a few disasters, but that's part of the fun.

Cooking Light has developed a new cookbook, The Ultimate Kid-Approved Cookbook -- its first for kids -- that helps you navigate the process. In it are more than 100 recipes, from snacks to meals and desserts, that you and your children can prepare together. It also provides plenty of pictures and suggestions as to what tasks your children can perform.

I caught up with the book’s author, mom, and registered dietitian Carolyn Land Williams, M.Ed, RD., and she shared her top 10 guidelines for turning today’s children into tomorrow’s budding chefs: 

1. Be a Teacher. Everyday tasks that may seem routine to parents can be great learning opportunities for kids. Encourage healthy lifestyle habits by using the grocery store as a classroom to count foods, identify colors, and practice reading skills. Take a field trip to the local farmers’ market or dairy farm so kids can learn where foods come from.

2. Focus on the Three B's. Involving your kids in the cooking process lets you Bond with your child(ren), Build their self-confidence, and Broaden their food base. You get to work together as a team, help them develop their fine motor skills, and teach them about the importance of nutrition.

3. Cleanliness First. Always wash your hands before starting to cook and after touching raw meat, poultry, or seafood. It’s important to teach children not to mix raw and cooked foods. In fact, one easy way to do this is to have different colored cutting boards for various foods -- such as red for meats and green for fruits and vegetables.

4. Kids Need Space Too. Creating a small, safe workplace in the kitchen for your child gives them a sense of ownership while cooking. Make sure to set kitchen rules, and communicate those clearly, so kids are aware of their boundaries. Read each recipe together before beginning, and chop or measure your ingredients as needed before starting.

5. Never Assume. Kids don’t necessarily know that an object or utensil may be hot or sharp, so make sure to tell them and to set rules about how to use (or not use) each object. Explain as you go, demonstrate, and then let them try.

6. Prevent Mishaps. While it can be very tempting, don’t sample food until it’s done. It can be unsafe for little ones to taste-test certain raw foods. Also, clean up spills as they happen (and they will!), and keep sharp or dangerous items out of reach, such as knives, scissors, and food processors. 

7. Be the "Lifeguard" of the Kitchen. Always supervise children in the kitchen. It’s never a good idea to leave younger kids alone. For older children, identify what is and isn’t OK to do when you’re not in the kitchen.

8. Follow the Leader. The best way to teach children healthy eating and safe cooking habits is to practice what you preach. Even though you may not think your kids are paying attention, they watch everything you do and will eventually adopt the behaviors they see. By eating healthy and being active, you’re sending a powerful message to your children.

9. Explore New Foods. The more foods you introduce to children, the greater the variety of foods they’re likely to eat as adults. Preparing ethnic dishes offers a great opportunity to try new foods, flavors, and spices, as well as to learn about a new culture. Consider having a theme night, complete with music from that culture. Older kids can research that part of the world and share fun facts at dinner.  

10. Break Out of the (Lunch) Box. With school right around the corner, it can be tough to think of fresh new meal ideas outside of the classic PB&J. Involve your kids in the meal planning and preparation, which will increase the likelihood that they’ll eat the healthier lunch that’s been prepared and actually enjoy it. 

The cookbook launched last week, but they sent me an early copy, and my children and I have had lots of fun making some of the recipes this summer. I highly recommend the Ooey-Gooey Peanut Butter Chocolate Brownies.

Do you cook with your children? Any tips to add to the list?

Image via Julie Ryan Evans

via thestir.cafemom.com

Cooking with kids is actually more fun that you think! Yes it is messy but it is also a great bonding experience and the ideal way to get your kids making healthy eating choices for the rest of their lives. Try finding healthy lunch ideas that make your kids part of the process

Packable Healthy Lunch Ideas

via eatingwell.com

Packable snacks and lunches to keep you healthy, wealthy and thin.

These grab-and-go lunches and snacks make it easy to resist a stop at the corner deli for an overstuffed sandwich or the vending machine for a bag of chips. Plus they deliver fruit, vegetables, whole grains, beans and lean protein, such as chicken and turkey, in sensible portions. Wrap them up or pack them in reusable containers and carry them with you. Even after just a week of bringing your lunch from home, you may find your pockets a bit heavier with cash and your waistline a tad trimmer.

Begin »

via eatingwell.com

Just click on the link to find some great healthy lunch ideas. Often healthy lunch ideas sound great but are not practical for children of school going age. This collection of healthy meals are different in the fact they are all easily fitted into a lunch box!

Farmer's Markets | Healthy Lunch Ideas

Today I celebrated GO Outdoors Day at the Boulder (CO) Farmer's Market.

Beautiful sunny weather, beautiful fresh produce, it was a perfect day to be outside.

And, now we have some delicious asparagus to enjoy for dinner tonight.

If you're in Boulder on a Wednesday or Friday, check it out for produce and for an outdoor meal. We had a global breakfast of veggie pot stickers plus a cheese and green chili pupusa. Perfect way to fuel an outdoor adventure.

via eatwellatschool.blogspot.com

Great post about visiting a farmer's market in Boulder. Farmer's markets are becoming more readily available and visiting them is not only a great way to buy fresh produce but also educate your children and get them to engage with where their food comes from. For more info visit healthy lunch ideas

Twitter Tips For Healthy Lunch Ideas

We enjoyed the Twitter chat with Fruits and Veggies More Matters this week! Today we want to share from favorite tweets from the chat and also popular links and tweets to information about My Plate.

Ready to get started with My Plate?  Here we go!

Click on the @links to go to Twitter profiles and you’ll see their latest tweets or click on hyperlinks to go right to the articles and resources.

via nourishinteractive.com

Tips and suggestions from twitter all aimed at getting your kids to eat healthy meals. Some pretty good links in here for healthy eating as part of the choose my plate campaign, worth clicking on a few of them. For more resources visit healthy lunch ideas

Meal Planner Tips | Healthy Lunch Ideas

Healthy Meal Ideas

Best Way To Use The MONDAY MEAL PLANNER and PRINTABLE GROCERY LIST:

I have found a few really useful meal planning/grocery list websites that I encourge you to use as well! The great part is you can choose recipes you love and you even can print a grocery list.

Remember these few rules when planning meals:

1. Choose lean meat such as poultry, fish or lean red meats

2. Serve plenty of fruits and vegetables!

3. Avoid high sodium, high fat, or processed foods such as pre-packaged meals, chips, candy, soda or frozen pizza.

4. Plan every meal including snacks to avoid trips to fast food restaurants or eating from the vending machine.

5. Whenever possible, purchase organically! (See

ORGANIC COUPONING 101)

5. Match your weekly sales with the recipes on these sites to create healthy dinners that are affordable!

Be sure to check out the organic deals on FAMILY HEALTH AND NUTRITION each week to see what is on sale and stock-up on items used regularly or that can be frozen for later: WEEKLY COUPON MATCH-UPS

WANT A PRE-MADE MONTHLY MEAL PLAN? SIGN-UP FOR THE FAMILY HEALTH AND NUTRITION MONTHLY NEWSLETTER!

Newsletter includes:

1. Monthly meal planner (healthy meal ideas for the entire month!)

2. Ways to have a healthier and more environmentally-friendly home.

3. Organic coupons and other ideas on saving money AND living healthier!!

4. Ideas for helping your children make healthier choices too!!

via family-health-and-nutrition.com

This post gives some goodmeal planner ideas and some background things to thing off before you start planning. It's a pretty useful resource as sometimes its overwhelming getting into a healthy eating shopping routine. For more resources go to healthy lunch ideas

Healthy Lunch Ideas for Vegetarian Kids

In recent times many children have taken after their parents and chosen to become vegetarians. A slight problem that vegetarian parents do face is finding healthy lunch ideas for vegetarian kids at school. With nut products banned from elementary schools due to allergies, parents find it difficult to pack a wholesome meal for their kids. Since nuts are a brilliant source of proteins in vegetarian diets parents have to look for alternative protein enriched sources for their kids.

Concerns of parents over the quality and variety of nutritious school lunches have led many schools to publish their lunch menus in advance. This way parents can overview the different lunch menus and educate their child about choosing the proper selection of vegetarian foods. If a school falls short of a vegetarian diet plan, parents can either pack kids lunches at home or persuade the parents’ forum to ask for change. 

Major supermarkets carry vegetarian diets which are ready to eat. Most meals are made from soy protein, providing kids with all essential nutrients they need. Cheese is also a great source of protein and can be taken in sandwiches, tortilla wraps or crackers. Children enjoy different kinds of cheese top choices include mozzarella, cheddar and havarti. Then there are other protein sources like hummus (made from chick peas), egg salad and egg sandwiches. 

Essential Food Groups 

A well balanced vegetarian lunch should include assortments from the four basic food groups. The first is protein. Protein is essential for kids between ages 4 and 10 and dried beans, peanut butter, eggs and cheese are recommended items. Grain products are second on the list; preferably the choice should be whole grain such as bread and crackers, alternatively bread sticks and unsweetened cereals can be used. 

Fruits and vegetables are the main course of the vegetarian diet, at least one of each should be added to the lunch, a can of tomato juice, mix vegetable juice and unsweetened juice can be included to mix things up every now and then. At least one item from the dairy product category should be in your child’s vegetarian lunch, examples are milk, cheese or yogurt.

Getting kids involved in lunch preparation is a good way to teach them about essential nutrients and to learn what they like and dislike. Parents can take time at grocery shopping and choose a good variety for a perfect vegetarian meal and plan meals with children over the weekend. Children over 12 can obviously prepare their own lunch and if not can help their parents prepare lunch. Healthy vegetarian lunches can take a little more preparation, but they are a lot of fun for kids to eat, especially when they have taken part in lunch selection and preparation.  

 Check out my other articles for more healthy lunch ideas!

More Than Peanut Butter | Healthy Lunch Ideas

Nuts for Nut Butters!

I might have been the only child on the face of the planet who despised Peanut Butter and Jelly sandwiches, and it wasn’t until I was an adult that I started eating nut butter. I didn’t know what I was missing! My tipping point occured when I started packing my own lunches for work, and realized all the possibilities for these creamy spreads!

No longer is the pb+j the standard! Looking for a way to liven your lunchbox? A healthy spread for your child’s sandwiches? Something new to dip vegetables in? Consider trying a new nut butter! Nuts are high in protein, fiber and good fats, and even a small amount can add a boost of flavor to your meals.

Most supermarkets carry specialty nut butters these days, but if you can’t find them, your local health food store is a great resource. And for the most economical way to enjoy nut butters, make your own at home!

1. Almond Butter

The almond is a sweet nut, that lends itself well to sweet flavors. A good alternative flavor-wise to peanut butters, goes well in sandwiches, spread on fruit, or stirred into oatmeal. For homemade, process for up to 15 minutes in the food processor (until it forms a smooth, spreadable paste).

Try one of these combos: [Almond Butter + Figs] or [Almond Butter + Apricots] or [Almond Butter + Orange Zest] or [Almond Butter + Honey] or [Almond Butter+ Chocolate Chips + sprinkle of Coconut] or [Almond Butter + Sliced Cherries]

2. Cashew Butter

Cashew butter is incredibly creamy with great mouth feel and a more subtle nut flavor. It lends itself well to Indian flavors and spices. Cashews also go well with other tropical fruits, such as mango and pineapple. For store bought, try For homemade, process for 2 to 5 minutes in the food processor.

Try one of these combos: [Cashew Butter + Curried Chicken Salad] or  [Cashew Butter+ Mango] or [ Cashew Butter + Pineapple] or [Cashew Butter+ Sliced Banana].

3. Hazelnut Butter

Most people equate hazelnut butter with outrageously sweet chocolate and hazelnut spreads, but savory hazelnut butter made out of plain ‘ole hazelnuts is a wonderful addition to sandwiches and can lend itself to a wide variety of flavors. For homemade, process hazelnuts in the food processer for 5 to 10 minutes.

via healthylunchidea.com

This article looks at the variations on every kid's favorite sandwich filling - peanut butter. The different options like hazlenut butter offer a greater nutritional variety and often are actually healthier than standard peanuts. For more nutritional info visit healthy lunch ideas

Healthy Lunch Ideas - Quick Snack Recipe

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Quick and easy breakfast recipe for kids and teens

http://www.howdini.com/howdini-video-6704831.html

Quick and easy breakfast recipe for kids and teens

Who better to teach kids how to cook than a kid? 18-year-old Justin Miller published his first cookbook several years ago and is already a professionally trained chef. This is a recipe for a quick egg breakfast kids will love to help make.

Keywords:
easy breakfast recipes
quick breakfast recipes

simple breakfast ideas

Duration : 0:2:51

via healthykidssnacks.net

Quick and easy snack recipe with video and text that is perfect for kids. Easy enough that kids, with or without supervision (age dependent!) can help making it. Designed for breakfast but could be made as a mid morning or afternoon snack. For more easy and simple recipes visit healthy lunch ideas

Nutrition Education | Healthy Lunch Ideas

Our brand of nutrition education is unique because it doesn’t always begin in the classroom. Of course it can if you use the new Balance My Day nutrition education curriculum, but what I’m talking about takes that concept and spreads it everywhere kids live, learn and play.

Schools, businesses, communities, healthcare organizations, families, and kids can all support a culture of health. Nutrition education is just one of the ways each of us can help in the fight against childhood obesity. It’s becoming easier now than ever before with the national Let’s Move campaign. There’s something everyone can do.

See below for some of the highlights of what we’re doing with our unique twist on nutrition education beyond classroom curriculum…from win-win partnerships to toolkits, from student chefs to a national recipe contest.

via healthykidschallenge.wordpress.com

Engaging, nutritional education with a difference. Article about how engaging with children when it comes to their healthy diet can make all the difference in the world and help form life long healthy eating habits. For more info visit healthy lunch ideas

Kid's Questions | Healthy Lunch Ideas

Here is an interesting question that I was recently sent by a class of grade 1 and 2 primary school students, who are currently learning more about food, fitness and health.

“We are learning about food and fitness and we want to know why are some
foods healthy and some foods not healthy? Do you have an answer to our
question? We also want to know what makes a healthy food turn into junk
food?”

What makes a food good for us?

A ‘healthy’ food is any food that provides a range of nutrients that helps our bodies to grow and develop normally. Nutrients can include substances such as vitamins and minerals, proteins and healthy fats, wholegrains, fibre and antioxidants that keep our bodies working normally, that fuel our daily activity, provide the building blocks needed to help us grow and that feed our brains and our bellies. A healthy food, as well as providing essential nutrients, is also one that does not make us sick or harm our bodies.

What makes a food unhealthy?

Foods that do not provide our body with many of the nutrients needed to help our bodies function everyday – things like excess sugar, salt and bad fats – are considered unhealthy. Unhealthy foods can also harm our bodies and do not make us feel well and full of energy. Sometimes foods contain other nasties, things like artificial colours and flavours, additives, artifical sweetners and chemical fillers, that also are not good for our bodies.

via foodfunhealth.com

This article answers the questions of some grade 1 and 2 primary school kids who asked about what makes food healthy and what can turn healthy food into junk food. Interesting focus for the article and some great tips in here. Nice to see an article from a child's perspective. For more healthy food resources go to healthy lunch ideas

School Dinner Story | Healthy Lunch Ideas

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Look at how one school in the United Kingdom turned round its poor healthy eating policy and became a source of nutrition for the children attending its classes. Interesting story. For more resources visit healthy lunch ideas

Healthy Lunch Ideas And School Activities

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One of the best ways to get kids involved in eating healthy is through fun educational activities. This video looks at having a "watermelon day" at your child's school and has some great engagment ideas. More info on engaging your kids with healthy eating at healthy lunch ideas

Healthy Lunch Ideas - Kids Eating Campaign

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A little bit product focused but an informative video about the nationwide produce for kids campaign. Some good information in the video so worth watching for that alone. For more info about healthy eating visit healthy lunch ideas

Allergy Friendly Recipes| Healthy Lunch Ideas

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Cooking healthy food for your family is not always easy and its made even more difficult if one of your children has allergies. This delicious and easy recipe is allergy free, the presenter also gives tips on how your children can help make the dessert. For more recipes go to healthy lunch ideas

Healthy Lunch Ideas - Easy Cook Chilli

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Great easy to make chilli recipe, perfect for the kids. Great thing is this is the kind of recipe that can be frozen and re-heated which makes cooking healthy for you family a whole lot easier. For more easy to cook recipes visit healthy lunch ideas

Kid's Recipes | Healthy Lunch Ideas

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Many parents are considering gluten free options when looking into healthy meal ideas and this recipe for museli looks tasty and is very healthy. Only negative comment I would make is it might be something to work up to with your kids as it has seeds and other ingredients they may not be familar with. For more recipes visit healthy lunch ideas

Low Fat Recipes | Healthy Lunch Ideas

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Great video from a food network run specifically for kids. This low fat quesadilla recipe looks absolutely amazing and is simple enough for your child to make with you, or for older children, without supervision. For more recipes visit healthy lunch ideas

Healthy Lunch Ideas And Nutrition Tips

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Although it is a little "product" focused this video gives some really good nutrition and cooking tips for kids. With a vegetarian focus, the owner of "Peas of Mind" really knows her stuff and gives some great advice. Fore more tips and advice visit healthy lunch ideas

Healthy Lunch Ideas - From Farm To School

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Getting your kids involved and passionate about healthy eating and nutritional food is the only way to start a life long love affair with a balanced diet. This informative and entertaining video for kids in a step in the right direction. For more information go to healthy lunch ideas

Healthy Food Game | Healthy Lunch Ideas

via youtube.com

Great game for your kids to play educating them on food nutrition and where their food comes from. Manages to be educational and still fun. Getting your kids involved is the biggest key to healthy eating, so this game is worth checking out. More info on games and resources at healthy lunch ideas

Total Health For Kids | Healthy Lunch Ideas

Did you know that Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends getting at least 60 minutes of moderate to physical activity for kids and close to that for adults? And do not forget that strength and bone- building exercise should be incorporated in your exercise routine along with aerobic activity. And if this task seems insurmountable, with numerous tips and exciting activities offered by SuperKids Nutrition, it is as easy as 1-2-3.

Everyday

• Get outdoors: take early morning or evening family walks
• Walk or bike to school and work
• Walk the dog
• Walk to the store
• Park the car further away
• Make a commitment starting today to make it a habit to take the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator
• Have fun creating and maintaining a garden. Weeding? It can count as squats-make it a work out!

*Remember 60 minutes a day, can add up quickly, 15+15 +30!

On the Weekend

• Hire a babysitter to spend time with your younger child while you exercise with the older child.
• Take a family trip to the beach or park and spend the day actively playing.
• Schedule a family outing that includes swimming, biking, walking, rollerblading, or hiking.
• Go on a fitness date: instead of the movies or dinner, hire a sitter to take a long walk with your spouse. Focus on fun conversation –you’ll be saving money too!
• Poor weather conditions?
  • Workout on an exercise bike while watching your favorite show. Learn more by investing in a bike trainer.
  • Try exergaming
  • Invest in a favorite workout DVD -what’s your favorite?

via superkidsnutrition.com

This article looks at something which is often forgotten when we think about keeping our kids as healthy as possible and that is exercise! Yes, we need to give great fuel to our kids but we also need to give them activities to burn that energy off! For more info visit healthy lunch ideas

Summer Simplicity | Healthy Lunch Ideas

The new USDA healthy eating graphic, ChooseMyPlate.gov, is a simple guide to smart meals anywhere. You can use MyPlate to quickly and easily plan healthful meals at home and on the go. MyPlate is perfect for summer picnics, since many picnic plates are already divided into sections!

PLAN

The KISS Principle (Keep It Super Simple) is a delicious way to make picnics popular with people of all ages. Choose a limited number of foods (no more than 4 to 5 items) that can all be served at the same time. Make the meal fun with a simple theme - like red, white, and blue foods for the 4th of July or an all-kebob meal on small skewers.

• Plan picnics for the yard, park, or lake: A picnic can make any meal special. Use beach towels for lunch in the backyard or pack a weeknight dinner to the park.
• Plan to keep picnic food safe: Always keep cold foods cold and hot foods hot. Frozen water bottles and juice boxes can do double duty as drinks and as chill packs.
• Plan active fun with your picnic: Plan to play before and/or after you eat. Bring along a Frisbee® or two. Pack some balls (or water balloons when it is really hot).
  

EAT

• Go fresh with fruits and veggies: Summertime is a very tasty time to follow the MyPlate tip to fill half your plate with fruits and vegetables. Farmer’s markets and supermarkets have local produce at great prices. It’s easy to prepare simple tossed or fruit salads at home. Or take a bag of baby carrots and slice a melon once you arrive.
• Go hearty with whole grains: Sandwiches, wraps, and pita pockets are perfect for picnics. MyPlate says to make half your grains whole, like whole wheat bread for sandwiches. Whole grains (cracked wheat, barley, brown rice, and the exotic quinoa) also make delicious cold salads, with chopped veggies and light dressings.
• Go smart with protein and dairy: MyPlate suggests protein and dairy foods at every meal. Protein can be tuna in a sandwich or a cold salad with black beans or chickpeas. Serve well-chilled plain or flavored milk (fat-free or 1%) or refreshing drinkable yogurts. String cheese is always popular with kids and easy to carry along.

ENJOY

Treat your family to regular picnic times this summer. Everyone can enjoy time to eat in a relaxed and casual setting. Just remember to keep fun on the menu!!

via eatwellatschool.blogspot.com

Quick look at how to create super, simple healthy summer food for your kids. Good resource, with the focus in on summer picnics and other summer meals manages to give a decent amount of info in a shortish post. For more info visit healthy lunch ideas

Outdoor Food Tips | Healthy Lunch Ideas

Healthy  Foods for Summer Outings, Picnics and Camping Trips

Enjoying time as a family in the outdoors is a great way to have fun with your children this summer- a family picnic or bbq at a local park, a mini hiking trip, cooking out at local lake, or a camping trip to a state park is an affordable way to spend a fun family weekend.

The great outdoors offers so many wonderful benefits of family time, special bonding moments, appreciation for wildlife and our earth, time away from the TV, and fun active outdoor activities. But too often, we bring prepackaged foods, hot dogs and chips to fill our kids’ tummies. Here are some easy healthy outdoor eating tips to ensure a great family time with fun and healthy food.

via nourishinteractive.com

There are very few things enjoy more than camping trips and other outdoor activities, but often these trips and excursions can lead some seriously unhealthy eating! This article gives some great trips on how to cut out the junk food from your outdoor adventures. For more info go to healthy lunch ideas

5 Easy Fruit And Veg Healthy Lunch Ideas

5 Ways to Add Easy Vegetable and Fruit to Your Daily Routine

Need easy vegetable and fruit ideas for you or your kids? Here are 5 simple ways to add more produce to your diet everyday to help reach your goal of seven to ten servings PER DAY!

Why do we need so many fruits and vegetables anyway?

Fruits and vegetables are full of important nutrients that can help prevent chronic diseases such as heart disease, diabetes and cancer.

DID YOU KNOW:

1. According to the American Heart Association, more than 80 million Americans have some form of heart disease?

2. According to the National Cancer Institute, 1 in 3 women and 1 in 2 men will have cancer in his or her lifetime.

3. Over 20 million children and adults have diabetes according to the American Diabetes Association.

These are staggering facts!

Be sure you and your family are on the right track to better health with these 5 ways to adding easy vegetable and fruits to your diet:

5 Easy Vegetable and Fruit Ideas

via family-health-and-nutrition.com

5 great ways to add fruit and veg into your children's diet quick and easy. This article really focuses on getting a good routine going and finding the easiest ways for your kids to eat more fuit and veg. Go to healthy lunch ideas for more tips and advice about healthy eating for kids.

Healthy Lunch Ideas - Gluten Free?

I have had several moms ask if I am suggesting that "grains are not necessary" (blog posting March 2011), do I then believe that gluten-free diets are healthier than typical US diets.

Like so many nutrition questions there is no black and white answer.

Gluten-free diets can be incredibly healthy even for those of us who tolerate gluten. Why? There are numerous reasons related to grains, that I discuss in my previous blog, but the primary reason is these diets eliminate the processed foods we love to eat. Most of our snack products, be it savory or sweet, contain wheat.

via healthykidshealthyfamilies.blogspot.com

This is a bit of specialized post but looks at a question that many parents are considering, if gluten free is meant to be the best diet for adults, does it translate into the same for kids? Really informative. More info at healthy lunch ideas

Teaching Kids The ABC| Healthy Lunch Ideas

Teaching Kids The ABC’s Of Essential Vitamins

 

A few charts I have found that can be helpful can be found here:

via blog.superhealthykids.com

Really interesting article based on the idea that kids are actually smart and can be taught about the benefits of nutrition. I love this idea as it really encourages engagement from kids within their healthy diet which I think is essential. More info available from healthy lunch ideas

Tips and Healthy Lunch Ideas

(Photo by Rick Loomis / Los Angeles Times)

It’s National School Lunch Week, and many articles I’ve read in the news deserve a nod in my newly instated link-round up “Around the Lunch Table“. I’ll be posting links to stories across the web which deal with all aspects of healthy lunches – politics, how-to tips, recipes and more.

While packing a healthy lunch is an important part of keeping a balanced diet, saving money, and eating well, the national school lunch program is a vital government effort that needs an overhaul. As a nation, we are experiencing a failing education system, rising childhood obesity, and the food that our kids are being fed is pitiful, to say the least. It’s no coincidence that these are all integrally linked.

Let’s hope that making this a national issue will lead to active changes in  schools across the country.

via healthylunchidea.com

Whole lot of healthy lunch links and tips in this post, comes from prospective of school lunches which is not to everyone's taste, but, include links across the whole healthy eating spectrum. Worth a look. Go to healthy lunch ideas for more resources.

Healthy Lunch Ideas - How To Help Your Kids

via healthykidssnacks.net

Great set of videos and a blog post looking at how parents can help with their child's nutrition. Coming from a qualified nutritionist the post / videos dig a bit deeper and give some really great advice to parents. Visit healthy lunch ideas for more info

Healthy Kids Challenge | Healthy Lunch Ideas

Fruits & Veggies Every Day the Tasty Way is one of the HKC Healthy6 messages, and matches up with MyPlate key messages teaching kids to make 1/2 their plates fruits & veggies. Teach Fruits & Veggies Every Day the Tasty Way to kids using this lesson titled Fruits & Veggies, Crunch and Munch. Utilize MyPlate and colors of the fruit & veggie rainbow to help kids hear, see, and practice the lesson. 

Summary:

Choose plant foods like fruits, veggies, and whole grains for fiber. For the greatest amount of fiber, eat the skin of fruits and veggies and choose fruit instead of juice. Fiber makes us feel full, making overeating less likely. Fiber also helps lower cholesterol for a healthier heart and keeps food moving through our digestive system.

Balance My Day Nutrition Education, Grades 3-5

These are just 2 parts of Lesson 6-  the sample lesson activity and the Move and Learn activity from p. 165 in grades 3-5 Balance My Day Nutrition Education Curriculum. The worksheet, teacher resource, fruit/veggie log, student assessment, discussion points and questions, and answer key are available for your review, along with school nutrition services and Taste and Learn activities supporting this lesson. Learn more on the Balance My Day Nutrition Education Curriculum page, or contact us with questions.

via healthykidschallenge.wordpress.com

Great healthy kids tips article from the healthy kids challenge. Looking at balancing food nutritionally for grade 3-5. Worth taking a look at for little ones of that age, gives very simple, easy advice. Visit healthy lunch ideas for more tips and suggestions.

Healthy Lunch Ideas - Eating With The Family

Some of my best memories as a child are of sitting around the table together as a family, sharing meals and conversations, discussing plans and daily happenings. Indeed, some of the best memories I’ve created with my husband were made over a thoughtfully prepared meal. Once our son was 6 months old, he too joined us at the family table, providing us with the opportunity to make our own family memories together.

The power of sharing a meal together as a family cannot by underestimated.

Here are a 5 reasons why family meals really are that important.

1. Role Modelling

2. Reconnect

3. Improve Weight Control

4. An Opportunity to Teach

5. The Power of Conversation

Photo Credit: Beverly & Pack

Tagged as: Family Meals

via foodfunhealth.com

Coming up with healthy lunch ideas is not all about the food you feed your children, a lot of the time its about instilling healthy food behaviours that will last them for life. This article talks about one of those and that is eating family meals together, the author gives 5 top reasons and they are worth reading! For more articles visit healthy lunch ideas

Healthy Lunch Ideas Mixed With The Right Snacks Will Get Your Kids Eating The Way You Want!

Snacks are a corner stone of getting your kids to eat a nutritionally balanced diet. Kids are natural grazers, so keeping healthy snacks handy for your little ones will cut out a lot of food with poor nutritional value that they may eat. I would suggest clearing your cupboards of anything that could be given as a quick snack and is not healthy. To be honest, if you are busy and the kids are complaining it’s always tempting, so just remove the option!

Healthy snack ideas for your kids:

* Fruit ices are easy and kids love them! Blend your child’s favorite fruit juice with vanilla yoghurt and just pop it in the freezer!

* Peanut butter snacks! These are great... just pop some peanut butter on a cracker or pita triangle and watch your kids demolish them!

* Dips - cut up a few veggies to have with humous or low fat ranch dressing. It’s simple, easy and keeps in the fridge… perfect snacking for little ones!

* Sweet potato slices - More nutritious than standard potato, just sprinkle some salt over thinly sliced baked sweet pots!

For more healthy lunch ideas visit my website!

 

 

Little By Little Is The Key To Your Kids Eating Great Healthy Food!

Introducing your child gradually to healthy eating is a great path to a balanced diet for your child. More importantly, this way you will make sure that the lessons you are teaching them extend into their adult lives. If you have a child that is "forced" into healthy eating, meal times become a battle and at the first opportunity they will choose unhealthy options.

If you usually give your child sandwiches for lunch, try introducing whole meal bread first. If this is met with an adverse reaction, try making a sandwich with one slice brown and another slice white. Next, try and keep the fillings that you would have used before but switch to a tortilla or whole meal pita bread. Bread has very low nutritional value but flat breads are the best variety and can be used as a bridge to healthy eating.

Just remember that if your child really hates something, do not force the issue too much. I am sure there will be another alternative that is more appealing to them. For example, if they won't eat apples, try a banana and so on. The key is step by step to make it natural for them to have a healthy lunch rather than try and incorporate everything at once! Force is the easiest way to get your child opposed to healthy food and create a barrier of negative associations within their mind.

Check out my website for more healthy lunch ideas!

Some More Healthy Lunch Ideas To Get Your Kids On Board The Healthy Wagon

The key to getting your kids eating great healthy food is getting them involved. If they feel you are simply imposing upon them, they are likely to resist and every meal time will become a battle! I am not suggesting that you give in and let your kids eat bad food, but it is easier to get them on board than you think. So when looking for healthy lunch ideas bear these tips in mind…

* Top Tip 1: Give them choices within healthy parameters. This means that you are still giving them healthy food, but you are also giving them some power over their own diet. Give them a choice of ranch dip or humous. Give them a choice of carrots or celery sticks. Would they like tuna mayo or chicken breast? Small choices within pre-defined limits make all the difference.

* Top tip 2: Relate healthy food to their favorite activities. Keep emphasizing that healthy food means they will be better at and have more energy for their favorite physical activities. This may not seem effective at first, but you are creating great associations for your kids that can last them a lifetime.

* Top Tip 3: Get them in the kitchen! Get them in the kitchen as often as you can. Start off on the weekends and get them stuffing pita bread with chicken and salad. Or making fun shaped oatmeal cookies that they can take to school that week. They will be more enthusiastic than you think!

Check out my website for more healthy lunch ideas!

Healthy Lunch Ideas – It Could Be Easier To Feed Your Kids Than You Think

Coming up with healthy lunch ideas for your kids could be far easier on you than you think…

* Step 1: Get a decent lunch box. This sounds silly but it makes all the difference in the world - get a lunch box with compartments. Bento boxes are huge right now, but you do not have to go with a brand, just something with compartments. The key is being able to divide everything up and getting into a formula. Main meal, something sweet, some veggie sticks with a dip and a piece of fruit.

* Step 2: Be kind to yourself and be as simple as possible. Choose things like ranch dip or cucumber and yoghurt that you can be made a few days before hand and just need veggie sticks added. Pre cook some chicken breasts to use for your tortilla wraps. The key is not putting pressure on yourself in the mornings. Make things that can be pre-prepared or take very little effort.

* Step 3: Try and choose things that the kids can help make! Obviously this is not something to be done first thing in the morning, but there is no reason why your little ones cannot help packing their lunch boxes the night before. I mentioned tortilla wraps and they are perfect for this! Just add some chicken breast, ranch dressing, lettuce and tomato and get your kids to roll it together, loads of fun! Another great option is pita bread. Again, all they need to do is be stuffed and kids love that!

So take these healthy lunch ideas and run with them!

Healthy Lunch Ideas Your Children Will Love!

This series of healthy lunch ideas are for picky eaters to get more greens.

It is called Feta Chicken Roll Ups.

To make Feta Chicken Roll Ups you'll need:

* 1 grilled or baked chicken-breast
* 1 whole-wheat tortilla
* Shredded lettuce
* Feta cheese
* Creamy low in fat Greek salad dressing
* Spinach
* Cherry tomatoes

It's also really easy to make:

1. Spread quite a thin layer of rich and creamy Greek salad dressing on the entire tortilla then spread the shredded lettuce over the dressing.

2. Then sprinkle the cheese sparingly

3. Slice the chicken and lay it over all the other ingredients. Do not pack the tortilla too filled with ingredients, or it's not going to roll-up tightly, which will be a messy experience all round!

4. Roll the tortilla up and cut into around 5 pieces. After that slice the cherry tomatoes in two.

5. Organize the plate by putting the roll-ups in the center, in a circular shape, in the middle of the cherry tomatoes. You might like to add a little extra rich and creamy low fat Greek salad dressing or low-fat ranch salad dressing for dipping. If your little one will eat black olives you can include these to the roll-up.

So exactly how are Feta Chicken Roll Ups beneficial for your kids?

The whole meal provides a nutritional powerhouse to your children:

* The chicken supplies a low fat, low calorie good source of protein.

* Despite the fact that feta cheese does provide lots of fat and calories, additionaly, it supplies a list of great nutritional advantages. It's a lot of vitamin B12, phosphorus and riboflavin. It's also a high protein food which is also high in calcium, but, use sparingly within the above recipe because of its high calorie and fat content.

* The whole-wheat tortilla is low in calories and high in fiber.

* You can choose the reduced fat Greek dressing, that is low in calories and fat whilst still being yummy!

* Spinach is full of calcium, folic acid, vitamin K and iron. It's also high in carotenoids, fiber and vitamin C. Add its lutein and bioflavanoids and spinach is really a nutritional powerhouse!

* Cherry tomatoes are a good source of vitamin A which is great for healthy vision and also a healthy immune system. It is also full of vitamin C which again, is great for your immune system, and also lycopene which is a powerful anti-oxidant that stimulates prostate health.

As you can see this recipe and my other healthy lunch ideas will be a hit with the children!