Kindergarten Lunches Get a Failing Grade

A lunch box audit performed by dietician Shannon Crocker in 4 Ontario kindergarten classes, has left much to be desired.

Cold hot dogs, gummy treats, sugary fruit beverages and packaged cookies were par for the course in those Dora and Diego lunch pales (do kids have lunch pales anymore?).

Here are some other undesirable findings from this survey of 82 lunches.

85% of lunches had no vegetables at all.Almost every container had one sugary treat and some up to five.Only five lunches included milk, but most of them had at least one sugary fruit-flavoured drink of little or zero nutritional value.Most children had only one drink to get them through the day, while some had nothing to drink at all.92% did not have a cooler pack - despite some lunches containing spaghetti and meat sauces that would be prone to bacteria, if left to get warm. Many lunches did not provide enough food for the long day the children were at school. Crocker's has a theory on this one though;

If a child doesn't eat much, parents might pack small amounts of food, or busy mornings allow little time to assemble lunches, money may be a factor, or there may not have been much food in the fridge that day. Source

Obviously this is concerning on several levels. It highlights the need for education and access to healthy foods for children. The socioeconomic status of the schools in question was not mentioned, but it goes without saying that children need access to healthy foods.

This is further complicated by the issue of big food sponsors, and a resulting skewed perception of what is considered "healthy".

I think parents can take some very simple and inexpensive steps to boosting the nutritional quality of their children's lunches. It takes only seconds to include some baby carrots or other sliced veggies (with hummus or red pepper dip for example), an apple, whole grain crackers with cheese, and a tuna sandwich on whole grain bread. And, it takes no time at all NOT to include a sugary drink.

If all else fails, get Detective John Kimble to teach your class.

Image Credit: Universal Pictures

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