Healthy Snacks And Lunches

The beginning of this week marks the beginning of a new school year for most school age kids and their parents.  Yes, some parents are doing their happy dance once again as the kids head back to class this week.
 So it seems like the perfect time to think about healthy and tasty lunches and snacks.  Some helpful reminders and ideas for not just the kids but the parents too.

Fruits and Veggies, sometimes keeping it simple sometimes just works the best.
So, enjoy some fruits and vegetables like grapes, berries, pineapple, apples, bananas, oranges, kiwi, tomatoes, avocado, carrots, celery, lettuce, or cucumber.
If you enjoy dips it can be a huge challenge to find something that isn't loaded with all those things we don't want, like preservatives, added flavoring and colours.  So why not stick with the basics like plain yogurt (since it is less likely to contain all that extra stuff.) and add fruit, jam, or whatever you like. I also like to use a 5% sour cream to make dips a well, just add any herbs or spices that you like.  My favourite is garlic powder, onion powder and fresh parsley.  Simple but tasty.

If your choosing canned or frozen fruits and vegetables read the labels to avoid any added preservatives, colour, flavouring, or sugars.
Being allergic to sugar, I learned a long time ago that just because the label says "Sugar Free" doesn't always mean it's actually sugar free.  Many times artificial sweetners, and sugar substitutes like Malitol (sugar alcohol) are used instead of natural alternatives such as fruit juice, agave, stevia, brown rice syrup, honey or pure maple syrup.
Splenda, for example is basically sugar and chlorine.  Splenda contains mostly Dextrose (a form of glucose derived from starch) and Maltodextrin (usually derived from wheat, corn, or even tapioca) with a small amount of Sucralose (artificial sweetener). To make Sucralose they basically replace three select hydrogen-oxygen groups on sugar molecules with three chlorine atoms. Now doesn't that just sound yummy...

Getting bored of sandwiches, then why not try wraps.  You can get healthy rice, wheat or corn wraps and the sky's the limit to what you can put in them. Everything from nut butter and banana, cheese and tomato, or leftovers from dinner the night before.
Why not try making up your favourite smoothie the night before and leave it overnight it the freezer.  By the time lunch rolls around you'll be able to enjoy a nice cold drink.

Check out all the snack and healthy meal idea at our "Recipes" & "Healthy Snacks And Meals"
boards at Life allergies at Pinterest



^{Source: wikipedia.org
               livestrong.com/article/502241-the-risks-of-maltodextrin}
               sugarscience.ucsf.edu/hidden-in-plain-sight/#.WasX2ciGPIU