Tips for Packing Healthy School Lunches

Post Date: Feb 02, 2022

Preventative Care

Good lunches do more than give a kid bragging rights in the cafeteria – they help build a foundation of health for students of any age, helping them focus better in school and create positive lifelong habits. As you pack school lunches with your kids, here are a few tips to make them as energy-filled and nutrient-dense as possible – not to mention tasty.

Focus on Healthy Food Groups

You don’t have to sacrifice convenience to incorporate healthy food groups. By loading up on foods like fruits and vegetables, hard-boiled eggs, nuts, dried fruit and granola bars, you can increase well-being without spending hours preparing. These options are easy to bulk prep in advance, portioning them out for each day of the week ahead of time.

Incorporate Sides and Snacks

The anatomy of a healthy school lunch often looks like one main course (like a sandwich, quesadilla or chili) with a vegetable, a fruit, and an extra (cookie, granola bar or trail mix). Having those smaller items to nibble on can be a boost of tasty nutrition that will encourage them to eat, even when they’re distracted by friends and social time.

Get Input From the Kids

Let the students become the teacher and offer up input on what they want to see in their lunch boxes. Having some control over what they choose—from a selection of healthy options, of course—can make for a lunch they’ll love to eat.

Cut Up Fruits and Veggies for Easy Eating

It’s easier for a whole carrot or apple to go uneaten than carrot sticks—bonus points for crinkle cut—or apple slices, especially for eaters who tend to nibble. And cutting these items into smaller pieces makes it easier for them to get in even a few bites of a healthy snack.