What are you packing for lunch This leaflet is for parents and carers in Bexley and aims to offer some advice about healthy packed lunches for children. The information is also applicable to older children and adults. Why not try some of the ideas yourself? While we appreciate that everyone tries to provide food that children will readily enjoy and eat, we encourage you to consider the ideas for packed lunches contained within this leaflet. School meal caterers provide hot, nutritionally balanced school meals for all children and this option should be considered before choosing a packed lunch for your child. Listening to you, working for you www.bexley.gov.uk
A packed lunch can make a valuable contribution to your child s diet and future health. It is important to include a variety of foods so that your child gets all the nutrients they need to be able to grow, learn and be healthy in life. All food and drink mentioned in this leaflet is in line with the statutory school food standards and if you follow the advice, you can be assured your child will be receiving a nutritionally balanced meal at lunchtime.
What does an average packed lunch look like in Bexley? Recent surveys in Bexley looking at the contents of packed lunches found they were too high in fat (especially saturated fat), salt and sugar, and just under half contained no fruit. Most fat, salt and sugar comes from a limited range of foods. The main contributors in Bexley are shown below and nutritionally coded. Crisps Biscuits Chocolate Bars 8.7g 0.5g 0.41g 4.8g 12.8g 0.05g 6.1g 9.9g 0.35g Ready to drink Juice Drinks 0g 23.2g 0.08g Chocolate Spread 4.7g 8.5g 0.02g Sweet Pastry 27.7g 14.5g 0.4g
CARBOHYDRATE for plenty of energy PROTEIN for good growth MILK AND DAIRY for healthy bones and teeth FRUIT for vitamins and minerals to keep children healthy VEGETABLES for vitamins and minerals to keep children healthy A healthy balanced packed lunch should contain a minimum of one food from each of the following groups. The list is not complete, but you could use this as a starting point to plan a week s worth of packed lunches for your family. Fresh, free drinking water is available in every school, so it is not usually necessary to include a drink in the lunchbox. It is important that children drink enough during the day so that they don t become tired and dehydrated. Water is the most suitable drink but if you want to include pure sweetened fruit juice, make sure it is no more than 150mls and with a straw to protect your child's teeth. 2 slices wholemeal bread 1 pitta 2 tablespoons cooked rice, pasta or couscous 1 wrap 1 bagle 2 small bread rolls Handful of new potatoes 2 slices roast chicken 2 slices ham 2 tablespoons hummus Half small can tuna, salmon, mackerel or sardines 1-2 eggs 2 tablespoons of beans/pulses Pot of yoghurt Matchbox sized piece of cheese Pot of fromage frais Pot of rice pudding 2 teaspoons soft cheese Pot of custard 200ml carton of milk 1 kiwi 1 slice pineapple 1 handful of strawberries 1 banana 1 heaped tablespoon dried fruit 1 clementine 1 apple 1 pear 1 handful of grapes 3 heaped tablespoons tinned fruit 1 celery stick 1 handful of cherry tomatoes 8 cucumber sticks 8 carrot sticks Lettuce Red pepper discs A few baby sweet corn
Some children may need more food at lunchtime than others, especially if they take part in after school activities. You could add one of these healthier options for extra energy. Remember healthier foods may still contain sugar so these should only be eaten at mealtimes when they are less damaging to teeth. Fruit bread Malt loaf Breadsticks Scone Tea cake Plain crackers Extra fruit Extra vegetables Extra half sandwich with different filling No added sugar peanut butter on toast Houmous High fat, salt and sugary food and drinks (such as the ones below) should be avoided where possible. Crisps Sausage roll Pasty Scotch eggs Pork pie Snack packs Stringy cheese Biscuits Sweets Processed fruit bars e.g. fruity bars, fruity flakes, wind-ups Chocolate bars, biscuits or products Cakes or cake bars Cereal bars Sweet muffins Croissants or pastries Jam tarts Flapjacks Chocolate spread sandwich Jam sandwich Flavoured water Diluted soft drinks (fruit squash, cordial e.g.blackcurrant drinks) Ready-made juice drinks Fizzy drinks
Tips for fussy eaters Be a good role model and build trust children will learn to mimic your eating habits, so you must do what you want them to do. If you are having crisps for lunch, your children will also want them. Give tiny tastes little and often it can take up to 15 times of seeing and tasting new foods before a child will accept them. Try out new ideas at teatime or at the weekend before including them in a packed lunch. Try out different ways of presenting foods just because a child doesn t like boiled carrots doesn t mean they won t like raw carrots, which are great for packed lunches. Allow them to help choose their lunch having a sense of control over what they eat will help them feel in control of themselves. Very often that loss of control is what causes the battle lines to be drawn. Get them to help with preparation of food children are more likely to trynew food or food they think they don t like if they have made it themselves. Try to eat meals together with your children as this can help to encourage them to try new foods'. Turn packed lunches into a battle of wills if your children really don t want something in their packed lunch, don t force them. Better totake it away and try something else but try not to give in to unhealthy foods. Use food items as rewards or make deals if you tell a child that if you eat your apple you can have chocolate you are subconsciously telling them that apples are bad and chocolate is good. Instead, offer a trip to the park after school for eating everything in their packed lunch. Hide food hiding food doesn t achieve anything in the long-term. You might have got them to eat something without realising it, but not only will they not trust you if they catch you out they also won t learn that they like it.
The cost of healthy vs. unhealthy Apart from the health benefits of choosing a balanced diet, it can also save you money. You might be surprised to hear that an average unhealthy packed lunch costs MORE than a healthy version. Average unhealthy packed lunch Chocolate spread 36p sandwich 1.45 34p Roast chicken and cream cheese pitta 34p 16p Apple 34p 18p Stringy cheese Chocolate biscuit bar Ready to drink juice drink 23p Crisps 0.76 4p Carrot sticks Healthy packed lunch 22p Bottle of water (Prices correct as of November 2015 using data from the main supermarkets) Using leftovers from the night before in a packed lunch is also a good way to reduce cost. Sliced processed meats are higher in salt than meats you cook yourself, so leftovers can also be the healthier option. Remember, children don t need a mountain of food, so keep them healthy and reduce your costs by packing a balanced packed lunch. Top tips for food safety Use an insulated box or bag with a small ice pack or frozen water bottle to keep lunches cool. You can even freeze yoghurt especially the tubes or pouches. Remind your children to wash their hands before eating lunch. If you would like the information in this leaflet in a different format, please call 020 8303 7777 and ask for Communications/Graphics The reference to quote is 606384.1.16 Listening to you, working for you www.bexley.gov.uk