Lunch Box Logic
A worrying number of Australian children will head back to school with lunch boxes that contain too many calories and too few nutrients - an equation that will only worsen the nation's childhood obesity problem .
According to Deakin University research, school children appear to be consuming less energy from bread, milk and fast foods than they were in 1995, but more energy from biscuits, fruit/muesli bars, cakes, fruit and packaged snacks.
National Executive Officer of Nutrition Australia, Jodi Phillips said: "Some children are over-consuming yet remain undernourished. Their poor eating habits can track into adulthood and can increase the risk of obesity and a range of other chronic diseases."
She suggests parents stock the fridge and pantry with healthy food choices - like milk, yogurt, cheese, fruit, vegetables, lean meat, fish, eggs, nuts, wholegrain bread, rice and pasta - then allow children to choose what they want to take for lunch.
Dairy Australia dietitian Maree Garside said: "Dairy foods are healthy additions to any lunch box. They provide calcium, protein, vitamin A, riboflavin, vitamin B12 and zinc.
"It is important to offer children foods that are packed with the nutrients they need to grow and stay healthy rather than less nutritious foods that provide calories but few nutrients," she added.
And recent research published in the British Journal of Nutrition shows drinking milk may benefit kid's weight . In a group of more than 800 three- to eleven-year-olds, children who drank more than two glasses of milk a day were fifty per cent less likely to be overweight than those who drank little milk.
"That is yet another good reason to pack the fridge and kids' lunch boxes with dairy foods," she added.
Background Information:
In Australia, over 20% of children aged 7-15 years are either overweight or obese and alarmingly the prevalence of obesity in this age group doubled in the 10 years from 1985 to 1995 .
Ice packs and insulated lunch boxes are widely available to help keep food cool throughout the school day.
According to Deakin University research, school children appear to be consuming less energy from bread, milk and fast foods than they were in 1995, but more energy from biscuits, fruit/muesli bars, cakes, fruit and packaged snacks.
National Executive Officer of Nutrition Australia, Jodi Phillips said: "Some children are over-consuming yet remain undernourished. Their poor eating habits can track into adulthood and can increase the risk of obesity and a range of other chronic diseases."
She suggests parents stock the fridge and pantry with healthy food choices - like milk, yogurt, cheese, fruit, vegetables, lean meat, fish, eggs, nuts, wholegrain bread, rice and pasta - then allow children to choose what they want to take for lunch.
Dairy Australia dietitian Maree Garside said: "Dairy foods are healthy additions to any lunch box. They provide calcium, protein, vitamin A, riboflavin, vitamin B12 and zinc.
"It is important to offer children foods that are packed with the nutrients they need to grow and stay healthy rather than less nutritious foods that provide calories but few nutrients," she added.
And recent research published in the British Journal of Nutrition shows drinking milk may benefit kid's weight . In a group of more than 800 three- to eleven-year-olds, children who drank more than two glasses of milk a day were fifty per cent less likely to be overweight than those who drank little milk.
"That is yet another good reason to pack the fridge and kids' lunch boxes with dairy foods," she added.
Background Information:
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