How can a child eating chicken nuggets and having drinks loaded with sugar possibly be able to focus through a math period?

When I was growing up, my elementary school did not have a cafeteria so it was our parent’s responsibility to send us to school with a packed lunch that we would eat in our individual classrooms. It wasn’t until I got to high school that I got to indulge in all the goodies that school cafeterias had to offer. Whether it was pizza or French fries it seemed like such a treat to have these options at school and not have to ask permission to eat them. Lucky for me I was still young and not financially independent so my opportunities to indulge in such foods were few and far between.

Unfortunately, that is not the case for most children in schools where these are the types of foods being served each and every day and many children rely on these meals. To help communicate how poorly children are being fed and the importance of eating healthy meals, a teacher in Illinois committed to eating school lunch just like her kids every day in 2010. I love the idea of a teacher experiencing the impact food has on the body and brain to better understand how the kids are functioning. Even better I love that each meal is being photographed and blogged.

To really experience your kids’ lunch visit Fed Up with School Lunch Blog and start talking to your school administrations and tell them how important it is to have healthy meals with whole foods for your kids and all kids.

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Are you Fed Up? A Teacher’s School Lunch Blog Project

Not only do you want your food to be affordable, but if you’re visiting DietsInReview.com, you also want it to be healthy. Just leave it to me, your resident healthy eating expert, to give you some quick and useful tips that will have you feeling great, losing weight, and saving cash in no time.

• Pack a food bag each week and include:
  • Fresh fruit that holds up: apples, oranges, bananas
  • Nuts: portion-control if possible, about one ounce
  • Individually-wrapped cheese sticks
  • Canned, wild-caught salmon
  • Frozen meals: Watch for healthy protein, and that it’s low in fat and saturated fat

• When packing a lunch, use a portion-controlled, divided, reusable container with a sturdy lid: Half the plate for veggies, one-quarter for lean protein, and one-quarter for whole grains.

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How to Have a Healthy Lunch at Work

(St. Martin’s Press). In her book, she outlines a Green School Action Blueprint for making greener and healthier changes at your child’s school. 

For many years I’ve been concerned about the quality of the school lunches fed to my children.

A charter school was my children’s home away from home for several years, and that school didn’t have a cafeteria, so all kids had to bring a lunch from home – one of the best options for most families if you want to improve your child’s lunch diet.

But now that my children are in the regular public school system, it has brought back lots of childhood cafeteria memories … praying my milk wasn’t sour in second grade, shamelessly wishing for tater tots seven days a week as a fourth grader, and watching friends mop up oil off the top of pizza slices with an extra napkin in high school.

Here are some tips on helping your children eat a more healthy lunch at school –

• Have your child bring a lunch from home, if at all possible. This may not only be the less expensive route, but it also gives you and your child the ability to make a superbly healthy lunch.

• Embrace your child’s involvement in the purchasing of healthy foods for this lunch and you will be taking advantage of educating your child to eat right at a very young age.

• Choose organic foods whenever possible for your child’s lunch from home. This will likely not only improve the nutrient levels of the foods your child eats, but is definitely also better for agriculture and the planet.

• Work with like-minded parents at your child’s school to initiate healthier options for school lunches purchased at school, such as farm-to-school programs and vendors that provide healthier, more sustainable, and organic product options. Realize you are dealing with both federal and school district policies that require patience and group organizing to change.

See Heather’s interview with Terra Wellington about her book The Mom’s Guide to Growing Your Family Green.

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How to Prepare Healthy School Lunches

Even at my age, I can’t help but get the back to school butterflies. I have always loved this time of year. I no longer have a need for fresh packs of pencils, new backpacks or new notebooks, but that doesn’t stop me from wandering down the aisles.

One thing that I don’t miss about back to school are the lunches. That food is still just as terrible as it was 20 years ago. I have a little girl who I mentor, and I’m just shocked every time I walk in to that cafeteria at the trays full of Crustables, corn dogs and football stadium nachos. Thankfully people like Chef Ann and millions of moms across the country are taking steps to ensure our kids are eating more filling, more nutritious foods to power them through their days.

If you are one of those moms responsible for packing school lunches, then consider these easy lunch box swaps this school year.

Containers. For starters, swap the brown bag for a reusable lunch container. It’s more environmentally sound and you don’t have to keep paying for new bags. Plus, the insulated bags let you send more fresh foods. Then, fill it with these healthier food choices:

Bread. Swap the white for wheat. Brands like Nature’s Own use whole grains and most varieties have no high fructose corn syrup and little or no added sugar.

Juice. Swap the sugar-filled juice box for a refillable thermos of 100% fruit juice. Again, it’s good for going green, is more economical, and less sugar is better for their little bodies.

Fruit. Swap fruit snacks for real fruit. The real stuff tastes better, is more filling and isn’t full of artificial colors, flavors and other ingredients. Stick to produce with a longer shelf life like grapes, apples, and oranges to save money, or just make sure your kids will eat all the bananas and berries before they go bad.

Snacks. Swap chips for crackers. If your kids have to have that crunch with their sandwich, opt for a whole grain baked cracker. Baked whole grain Goldfish or Pepperidge Farm’s Baked Naturals are tasty choices.

PBJs. Swap peanut butter for nut butters. Almond, pecan and cashew are popular varieties that are perfect for kids with allergies. Watch for low-sodium, low-sugar varieties on these healthy-fat nuts. Also, watch the sugar content on your jams and jellies.

Vegetables. Swap none for some! There aren’t many of these in lunch boxes. Add a slice of tomato and spinach leaves to a turkey sandwich, some carrot sticks and hummus for crunching or even a fresh salsa for dipping their crackers.

Dessert. Swap snack cakes for pudding cups. They are still kids afterall! Snack cakes and other store-bought, processed pastries are full of some of the worst food ingredients. Jell-O pudding cups come in surprisingly delicious sugar-free varieties. Also consider Greek yogurt with fruit, like Chobani.

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Healthy Lunch Box Swaps that are Good for Your Kids