I know how crazy it can be to pack lunches that are nutritious, easy, tasty and offer variety. Whenever possible, it is best to start them young when they aren’t rebellious about eating healthy and then it is just part of their life. However, it’s never too late to start.
When our daughter was 5 months old was drooling as she watched me eat and reached for food on my plate, I realized it was time to start her on solids. She was solely a breastfed baby at that time and in the 95th percentile in weight and height. I couldn’t imagine starting her on food, but she made it clear she was ready for more. With my post-graduate work in nutrition, I knew it was important to avoid grains at that age due to the possibility of creating bowel problems or allergies, I started her with sweet potatoes, carrots and avocado. Sweet potatoes are rich in Vitamins A, C and B6, plus terrific for fiber, iron and potassium. Carrots are an excellent source of Vitamins A, K, C, many B’s plus has other healthy vitamins and minerals. Avocado is packed with vitamins and minerals, including folate (great for the brain), fiber, Vitamin A and E. She devoured these foods and they are still amongst her favorites today.
When discussing food choices with patients, whether for their children or themselves, I always stress the important of keeping the grains to not more than one serving per day. Grains are very high in Omega 6’s, which can be inflammatory to the body, unlike Omega 3’s (ie cold water fish, avocado, etc.), which are never inflammatory. To some, inflammation can cause extra mucous production (in colds and allergies), irritation to the bowel, weight gain, etc. The problem is that most Americans eat several servings of grains in a day. Cereal or toast for breakfast, crackers or pretzels for a snack, sandwich at lunch, and rice, pasta or bread with dinner.
So, how do you pack nutritious and filling lunches without grains? Good question. Here is what I recommend for children in preschool. First, whenever possible, when I prepare dinner, I always prepare extra vegetables and will pack some in my daughter’s lunch. By lunchtime, it is room temperature instead of cold and she doesn’t seem to mind. The same might apply for her protein. If we’ve had chicken or fish the night before, I’ll just put some in her divided container with veggies. About ¼ to 1/3 of her meal is protein.
Since I prefer to avoid sandwiches during the week, I will sometimes take turkey cold cuts (have them sliced a bit thicker at the market), and put something healthy in the center before I roll it into a wrap. Some of her favorites are sweet potatoes, chopped spinach or avocado. What is funny is that she won’t eat fresh raw spinach by itself, but she loves it inside the turkey rollups. And, since raw spinach is one of the healthiest foods you can eat, it was important for me to find a way to get her to eat it regularly. Sometimes I mix spinach and sweet potatoes together or avocado and spinach together for variety. For older kids, put the same foods in a wrap, unless they still like to have food on their fingers.
About once per week I like to give my daughter sushi. She loves California, avocado or vegetable rolls. I buy the sushi with brown rice as it is healthier than white rice. One of these days I will start making them myself, but to date haven’t tried that yet. Nori, which is used to wrap the sushi, is an extremely healthy food as it is chock full packed with vitamins and minerals. For a complete nutrient list, go to http://www.whfoods.com/genpage.php?tname=nutrientprofile&dbid=51 .
If I am not packing leftover vegetables from the night before, I will pack fresh green beans, carrots, cucumbers, and peas. All are very sweet before they are cooked and have digestive enzymes, to help you digest your food. My daughter absolutely loves most fresh vegetables, although sometimes I have to give her a healthy salad dressing to eat raw cauliflower or broccoli.
Homemade eggrolls or using tortilla wraps are terrific for variety. Making egg rolls can be fun but time consuming, however you can freeze them so it's a good activity for a snowy or rainy weekend day. I’ll stir-fry lots of vegetables (Chinese cabbage, carrots, spinach, mushrooms and sprouts) plus chicken (I’m sure you could use TVP for vegetarians, but I haven’t tried it), and use that as a filling. Cook in 100% pure and organic canola oil and drain them on a rack to get rid of the excess oil. In tortilla wraps, mix some pre-cooked black beans and spinach in olive oil and garlic and add a little goat cheese, which is easier on the digestive system than cheese made from cow's milk.
While on occasion I will pack leftover Pad Thai, I always make it with a lot of vegetables, so the pasta content is minimal. This is a great food for those with wheat allergies as the noodles are rice and we just avoid the peanuts. It’s easy to make and I just stir fry or steam the vegetables to keep the nutrient level high.
Healthy snacks typically involve fruit. Since there are many food plans (ayurvedic and food combining to name a couple) that stress to not eat fruit around a meal, I will usually pack a piece of fruit for a snack. Fruit uses different enzymes for digestion than for other foods, so, it is better not to eat them either right before or after your meals. Bananas, apples, pears and peaches are the easiest as I can just wash them and put them in her lunch box, but I will also cut up melons or other fruit when they are in season. If we are at home, organic yogurt is a filling and healthy snack. Most often, she prefers “nature’s candy” to other snacks, although she does love the rare occasions when she can eat chocolate. She gets that from both sides of her family!
Nuts are an excellent snack, although with many schools not allowing nuts due to nut allergies, give your child nuts after school or on the weekends. Walnuts are by far the richest in Omega 3’s, but almonds and cashews are a good choice as well. Mix with raisins, sunflower seeds and banana chips for a healthy and filling snack. Pistachios are rich in vitamins, minerals and fiber and can help you increase the protein in your diet and are antioxidants.
For those with children with ADD/ADHD or behavioral problems, you’ll see a lot of positive changes with a sugar and chemical free diet. While my daughter will have juice (small glass half mixed with water) occasionally, it’s more of a treat for her. Eating healthy foods is a way of life for her so she rarely even asks for foods containing sugar.
Healthier eating does lead to an improved immune system and a clearer mind.
