Calling a Truce on Lunchbox Wars -- Tips to Make the Most of Daily Nutrition

By Paula Chase-Hyman

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Packing a healthy lunch for your kids might be easy for you, but it might be a struggle for you to get them to eat it! Writer Paula Chase-Hyman offers some tips to end the lunchbox wars!

Where to Draw the Line
Nicki Watts, mother of two, doesn't struggle with what to pack her two boys for lunch each day. She knows what they like and dislike and packs accordingly. A typical lunch for Caelen, 7, and Craig, 10; a sandwich, two snacks and a drink. "The snacks usually consists of a combination of either a fruit cup and a bag of chips or a bag of fruit snacks with chips," she says. "Basically it's usually one sweet and one salty snack."

Watts isn't alone in packing lunch according to the salty-sweet variation. She also has her boys buy hot lunch from school at least two to three times a week based on their favorite food days, usually Pizza Friday and Nuggets Wednesday. All is peaceful in the Watts household, but is Mom sacrificing a balanced, nutritious lunch to keep the morning drama to a minimum?

According to Emily Moeller, a Registered Dietician at Temple University Hospital and University Children's Medical Center, Watts' approach is typical, and though not entirely unbalanced could use some refining to ensure her boys are getting the maximum nutrients.

"It's very important to pack a lunch you know they'll eat," Moeller says in support of Watts' lunch-packing approach. "But if you know they are going to have a sweet for lunch, then plan healthier meals for breakfast and dinner. "

Fueling Your Child's Engine
If you can count on one hand how many veggies or fruit servings your child ate throughout the entire week, you don't need a dietician to tell you their diet is unbalanced. But knowing what's good for your kids and having them eat a nutritious meal are on two different ends of the spectrum.

Moeller points out, for example, that although hot lunches are served with vegetables and fruit, most kids don't bother to eat them. So even when they're exposed to a balanced meal, there's no guarantee they'll take advantage of it. So what's a parent to do? "It's important to look at the whole day's worth [of eating] before you look at lunch specifically. Try to have whole grain, fruits, veggies and a meat or protein source within the meals you eat throughout the day starting with breakfast."

But for many of us, the nutrition battle begins with breakfast, if there's time for it at all.

"My kids only eat breakfast on weekends," Watts admits. "I try to keep bagels and Pop-Tarts in the house for them to grab on their way out. But if we get out of the house early enough they can buy breakfast at school and they love that."

Bagels and pop-tarts aren't necessarily bad things, but in order to set the tone for the rest of the day, breakfast should be more substantial. Moeller suggests cereal and milk, either hot or cold, because the protein and fat from the combo helps to slow down the digestion process. Another good combination is eggs and toast with jelly and butter. "If you have eggs a lot, try egg whites," Moeller recommends. "Three to four eggs per week is good."

If like most your morning resembles the qualifying lap for the Indy 500, try any of the following to add a little substance to quickie meals:

• Add peanut butter, an excellent protein source, on top of that bagel, English muffin or toast
• Toast a low-fat waffle and top with fruit, yogurt or cottage cheese
• Keep OJ or milk key parts of breakfast versus fruit drinks

Don't Be a Diet Dictator
You've used that line, "Because I'm the Mommy/Daddy and I said so," to explain your actions so many times your kids probably mimic along. It may work as rationale for why it's bedtime but it's not a very convincing argument to get a child to eat something they dislike. The truth is, you can pack whatever you want in your child's lunch but if they aren't eating it, no one wins.

Key to avoiding a food standoff is to involve your child in the lunch packing process. "Talk to them about what they like and don't like and work around that," Moeller suggests. "Bring them with you to go grocery shopping so they'll pick out fruit and veggies they do like to eat."