It’s that time of year again, and there’s no better way to start the school year than with a lunch box full of healthy, tasty food. And just in time for back to school, the Cancer Council has launched healthylunchbox.com.au as part of its Eat It To Beat It campaign to help take the stress out of building a healthy lunch box.
Research suggests that 1 in 3 cancers can be prevented through healthy lifestyle choices such as making healthy food choices and getting active every day. With 93 per cent of children not eating the recommended amount of daily vegetables, there is a great opportunity to improve the health and wellbeing of our nation’s kids.
Healthy lunch box builder
healthylunchbox.com.au is an interactive tool that can take the guesswork out of putting together a healthy lunch box, with tips and tricks for fussy eaters and time-saving cooking hacks as well.
There’s also a range of recipes to help keep that lunch box fresh and appealing over a year’s worth of school lunches.
Beyond the lunch box builder, the Eat It To Beat It campaign is also running:
Healthy lunch box sessions
15-minute sessions demonstrating lunch box ideas kids will love and simple ways to get the whole family eating fruit and veggies.
Fruit and veg sense workshops
90-minute sessions on how to save money on food shopping, how to deal with fussy eaters, time-saving recipe ideas and more.
With 1 in 4 school-aged children categorised as overweight or obese, it’s never too early to start teaching healthy choices. To register for one of the sessions and access other great resources, check out cancercouncil.com.au.
Our favourite healthy lunch box hacks
Wholegrains. The humble sandwich is a staple of lunch boxes around the country. Choose wholegrain or wholemeal bread as a simple, quick way to make this playground favourite healthier without making it any less convenient.
Water. The last Australian Health Survey found that 47 per cent of children were consuming sugar-sweetened beverages. Pack water into that lunch box to help avoid unnecessary refined sugar.
Go meat-free. Salt-reduced baked beans, falafels, mini frittatas and hummus with veggie sticks are all great meat alternatives for a healthy lunch box. By choosing plant-based alternatives to meat you can get important nutrients like protein and iron plus an extra serving of veggies all in one go.
