Good nutrition for back to school

Healthy food choices and a regular meal schedule can boost your child's energy, productivity and brainpower. Here are some simple tips for breakfast, lunch and snacks.

Don't skip out on breakfast. Breakfast gets the day off
to a good start. An example of a good breakfast is an
egg, a slice of whole grain toast with nut butter, a
piece of fruit and a glass of low-fat milk. Tofu, lean
meat and whole grain cereals are also good
choices at breakfast. The protein and fiber from
the whole grains will keep your child satisfied until
lunchtime.

Try to avoid giving your child sugary breakfast
cereals, white-flour pancakes and syrup, all of which
will leave your child hungry and tired half way through
the morning. If your child tends to get hungry in the
middle of the morning no matter what, send an apple,
whole grain crackers, nuts and cheese snacks rather
than sugary cookies or white-flour crackers.

Monitor lunches. Most schools try to provide nutritious
lunches for children, but many cafeterias offer fast food, fries
and other poor-quality foods alongside the usual lunch
selections.

Eating healthy at lunch will help keep your child's mind sharp and ready to learn all afternoon. Convincing school to change their lunches might take a lot of effort, but there are other things you can do, such as teach your kids the importance of eating nutritious foods. Hopefully with your help they will choose healthier salads and vegetables instead of fries, and water instead of soda. Another option is to send lunch with your kids. Hearty soups, salads, fruits, and sandwiches with whole grains can all be packed in insulated containers to stay hot or cold.

After school snacks. Even with a great breakfast and healthy lunch, a light after-school snack is nice to refuel a kid's body before play or study time. A handful of nuts and an apple is perfect, or maybe a snack tray of vegetables and dips. Even a healthy version of a PB & J will satisfy picky kids. Keep chips, sugary sodas, pastries and candy out of the house.

For more nutrition tips, visit the Health Canada web site at
http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/nutrition/index-eng.php.

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