Back to School Healthy Eating

healthy snacks for kids

Healthy eating and lunch ideas for kids

 

For weeks both parents and children have been preparing for the first day of school. And with everything from book bags to wardrobe purchased, there is one area that parents may have overlooked—preparing your kids for a healthy school year. Though schools have been cutting back on unhealthy meals and snack, it does not necessarily mean your child will be eating healthy foods. Whether you send off your first grader or high school senior, the same rules apply when it comes to eating right. Here, Co-founder of BeyondDiet.com and Nutritionist Isabel De Los Rios provides helpful tips to best prepare parents and students for a healthy school year.

What to Pack

“You want to be sure your child is fueled with the right combination of healthy protein, carbohydrates and fat to maintain energy levels, avoiding fatigue and cranky behavior,” explains Isabel.

Need Lunch Box Ideas? Tips for Fast, Fun, Healthy Lunch-to-Go

what are you doing for lunch book

Brown Bag Lunch Ideas

It was a tragic lesson in the risks of consuming a fast-food, sugary diet….

Dr. Mona Meighan’s normally punctual 26-year-old son, Luke, did not show up for work one morning in 2009. A concerned co-worker stopped by Luke’s apartment and found the young man dead in his bed. An autopsy determined he died from complications of undiagnosed diabetes.

“For seven years, through college and into his work life, Luke lived on pizza and fast foods, sodas and sweet desserts,” says Meighan, an education consultant and author of What Are You Doing for Lunch?: A Friendly Guide to Brown Bagging as a Better Way to Lunch (www.whatareyoudoingforlunch.com).

“Since we have no diabetes in our family, I can only believe Luke’s diet contributed to his death. Too often, young people aren’t aware of how food affects their health. As an educator, I thought the best way to remember Luke was to give people the tools to change their lunch habits. By brown-bagging, you can avoid a lot of processed foods loaded with calories and carbohydrates. It’s healthier – and less expensive!”

Celiac Disease in Children

Celiac Disease in Children

Celiac Disease in Children 

 

Birthday party guests usually bring gifts, not cake. So imagine my surprise when at my daughter’s eighth birthday party I answered the door to a mother holding a beautifully decorated cake complete with candles. Sonya and her son Jake stepped in and opened my eyes.