GREENSBORO, N.C. — Class is back in session for Triad Students. Well-balanced meals are proven to improve academic performance. While many students eat food provided by the school, many prefer to bring their lunch.
Registered Dietician Lauren Mardeusz owns Salt + Honey Nutrition, LLC. She joined WFMY News 2 live in the studio to share some tasty and healthy food options for kids.
“If our brain is looking for calories it can’t use those calories to then work on focusing and paying attention in school,” Mardeusz said. “If we have regular nourishment throughout the day, it’s so much easier for kids to focus and get the good grades we want them to get.”
Mardeusz said when parents are packing lunch, they should try to include these four food groups:
- Grains
- Fruits/Vegetables
- Dairy
- Protein
“Bento-style lunch boxes are popular right now,” Mardeusz said. “Lunches don’t have to be that standard sandwich, veggie, and potato chip.”
Lunch Examples:
Meal 1: Quesadilla with beans and cheese, hummus with cucumbers, and berries.
Meal 2: Yogurt with berries, carrots, grapes, and granola.
Meal 3: Whole grain peanut butter and jam sandwich, cheese, berries, hummus, and peppers.
Mardeusz recommends parents avoid foods with excess sugar.
“Things like sweetened apple sauces, sometimes we don’t always know they have added sugars,” Mardeusz said. “Jams, we can get them where they don’t have added sugars. Maybe serve a small amount of chocolate chips instead of packing a sugar-laden prepackaged food.”
With a recent recall of deli meat, from companies like Boar’s Head, linked to a listeria outbreak, Mardeusz said there are several ways to pack a well-rounded lunch without using deli meat.
“We’re going to focus on things like hummus, black beans, cheese, yogurt, and nut butter for protein,” Mardeusz said.