Healthy lunch box ideas
Healthy lunch box ideas
Healthy lunches and snacks are important for children to help with concentration and learning. We know that kids need 2 serves of fruit and 5 serves of vegetables every day along with plenty of whole grains, dairy, protein and water. But how can you include these all in your child’s lunchbox and still make it fun and interesting to eat?
Try some of these ‘everyday’ combinations and take the hard work out of deciding what to put in your kid’s lunch box.
Why not prepare them the night before to save on time and get the kids to help.
Monday
Morning snack: Piece of fruit such as an apple or mandarin.
Lunch: Two vegetable sushi hand rolls.
Afternoon snack: Low-fat fruit yoghurt.
Drink: Water.
Tip: Buy some pre-made vegetable sushi the day before and keep in the fridge for lunch the next day.
Tuesday
Morning snack: Celery boats filled with low fat cream cheese and sultanas.
Lunch: Wholegrain roll filled with shredded roast chicken (no skin) and one cup of coleslaw with low-fat dressing.
Afternoon snack: Piece of fruit such as a kiwi or pear.
Drink: Water.
Tip: Use a water bottle kids can refill throughout the day.
Wednesday
Morning snack: Ham and zucchini muffin.
Lunch: Pinwheel sandwich. Layer a slice of wholegrain bread with avocado, grated carrot, cucumber and lettuce then roll up, cut in half. Make two.
Afternoon snack: Cherry tomatoes and cubed low-fat cheese.
Drink: Water.
Tip: Muffins can be frozen individually. You can find more healthy savoury muffin recipes in our recipe section.
Thursday
Morning snack: Snow peas and sliced capsicum with low-fat tzatziki dip.
Lunch: Wholegrain sandwich filled with mashed boiled egg, lettuce, avocado and alfalfa.
Afternoon snack: Sliced melon.
Drink: Water.
Tip: Go for fresh or canned fruit in natural juices. Dried fruit is sticky and high in sugar so eat occasionally or as part of a meal.
Friday
Morning snack: Small bunch of grapes.
Lunch: Tandoori chicken wrap. Tortilla bread spread with tzatziki and filled with grilled skinless chicken marinated in tandoori spices, diced tomato, cucumber and shredded lettuce.
Afternoon snack: Wholemeal apricot muffin.
Drink: Water.
Tip: Freeze cooked meats in sandwich-sized serves for a quick and easy lunch.
Remember that not all children go to childcare or school with lunch boxes filled with chips and lollies despite what children think and say! It is important to keep offering healthy lunch box choices in a variety of ways, as children learn to eat what is familiar to them. Remember that it may take time to change your child’s food preferences to more healthy choices.
