How to Choose a Lunch Box

By eHow Parenting Editor

Your choice of lunch box reflects your inner self. Are you strong and quirky like an old metal lunch box? Light and colorful like a plastic lunch box? Or soft and cozy like a lunch bag? Here are some things to consider when choosing your lunch box.

Things You’ll Need:

  • Brown Paper Sacks
  • Lunch Bags
  • Thermoses
  • Napkins
  • Plastic Food Containers
  • Plastic Forks
  • Plastic Spoons
  • Ice Packs
  • Lunch Boxes

Step1

Consider what you'll use the lunch box to carry. Use a tough metal or plastic lunch box to protect foods that can bruise, break or smush. If you plan to pack your foods in plastic containers, a soft lunch bag is fine.

Step2

Choose a lunch box or lunch bag that is large enough to accommodate all your items without having them move around when jostled.

Step3

Consider how you'll be handling your lunch box. If you'll have to fit it in your backpack or book bag, a hard exterior will keep your food from being squashed.

Step4

Purchase a soft-bodied, insulated lunch bag if you'll be carrying items that need to be kept cool or hot. Few hard-shell lunch boxes offer insulation.

Step5

Purchase an insulated beverage container (either with the lunch box or separately) just in case you decide to bring along a little soup, coffee or another beverage.

Step6

Think about the image you'd like to project to your coworkers and companions, and choose your lunch box accordingly. Most plastic and metal lunch boxes will carry images of some sort, including superheroes, cartoon characters and even political figures.

Tips for a healthy lunchbox


Read our tips on making successful sandwiches, adding something a bit different to lunchboxes and choosing healthier options.

On this page

Making sandwiches

Something different

Healthier alternatives to sweets

Drinks

Reducing salt, fat and sugar

Making sandwiches

Try to keep a selection of breads in the freezer for sandwiches. Then you can just take out what you need for one day's lunchbox and defrost it on a plate or in the microwave.

Using a different type of bread each day can make lunchboxes more interesting. Try granary, wholemeal and raisin bread, multi-grain and seed rolls, mini wholemeal baguettes, bagels and wholemeal pitta.

If your child refuses to eat brown bread at first, try buying 'whole white' sliced bread (white bread made with one-third wholemeal flour). Or you could make a sandwich from one slice of whole white bread and one slice of wholemeal/brown bread.

  • Always try to add a little salad to a sandwich.
  • To avoid soggy sandwiches, make sure that you dry salad with kitchen paper or a salad spinner before you add it to the sandwich. Or you could put cucumber sticks and cherry tomatoes in a separate sandwich bag.
  • Try to use less butter or margarine and avoid mayonnaise if you can, or use lower-fat versions.
  • Pick low-fat sandwich fillings, such as lean meats, including ham or turkey, fish (such as tuna or salmon), cottage cheese, Edam, mozzarella, or sliced banana.

Something different

On cold days, you could give your child some soup in a vacuum flask, with some wholemeal or granary bread. If you have time, you could make your own soup - tomato, chicken and sweetcorn, and vegetable soup are healthy options that are quick and easy to make. You could add lentils and barley to thicken the soup but try to avoid adding salt. If you buy soup, try to choose varieties that are low in salt.

  • In the summer, salads are light and refreshing and full of essential vitamins and minerals. Try to include a variety of different salad vegetables - for example radish, grated carrot, spinach, tomato and spring onion. You could also sprinkle an assortment of seeds over the salad (sunflower, pumpkin, sesame and pine nuts) or dried fruit such as sultanas, raisins or chopped apricots.
  • Make a rice salad using cooked brown rice and lentils - you could add chunks of cooked aubergine, pepper slices, chopped spring onions and pieces of cooked turkey or chicken. Pasta salads are also a good option. Try mixing cooked pasta with tuna and avocado, or chicken, sweetcorn, cherry tomato and spinach leaves.

  • Home-made pizza is also a great choice. Why not make a pizza together for an evening meal and save some for the next day's lunchbox? On the pizza base, put a tomato and basil sauce/paste, mozzarella cheese and plenty of chopped vegetables - peppers, onion, mushrooms and sliced courgettes. You could also make a mini pizza using a wholemeal muffin cut in half and topped with vegetables or ham. Toast this under a grill for a couple of minutes for a fun and different snack.

  • Try adding a slice of home-made Spanish omelette with potato, courgette and tomato, or broccoli and tomato quiche. You could also have these for an evening meal and then save a bit for the next day. If you make your own quiche, don't add salt. If you buy quiche, try to choose options that are lower in salt and fat.
  • Don't forget to add some vegetables to your child's lunchbox, such as cherry tomatoes, or sticks of carrot, cucumber, celery and peppers. Raw sugar snap peas are also a good choice because they are naturally sweet and crunchy.


Healthier alternatives to sweets

Fruit salad makes a great dessert. You could make an exotic version with blueberries, raspberries, strawberries and grapes, or a more traditional version with apples, bananas, grapes and oranges. This will count towards your child's five daily portions of fruit and veg.

  • Try adding a handful of dried fruit, such as raisins, apricots, figs or prunes - these can also count as a portion of fruit and veg and this is a way to encourage your child to try new foods.

  • Try different desserts, such as stewed fruit (without added sugar). You could add a spoonful or two of natural yoghurt to the fruit, or sprinkle some rolled oats and seeds on the top for extra crunch.
  • Instead of cakes, chocolates and biscuits, try scones, currant buns (without icing) and fruit bread.

  • Make sure that your child gets enough calcium by adding a slice of cheese, yoghurt (preferably sugar-free or low in sugar) or rice pudding, choosing low-fat versions where possible.


Drinks

Always include a drink to go to keep your child hydrated and help them concentrate. Go for still/sparkling water, semi-skimmed or skimmed milk, or unsweetened fruit juice.

Add a fruit smoothie made from natural yoghurt, mixed berries and maybe a dash of honey, or maybe a home-made milkshake (try mixing semi-skimmed milk with puréed strawberries or raspberries).

Reducing salt, fat and sugar

When you're choosing foods for your child's lunchbox, always try to watch out for the levels of salt, fat and sugar. If you're buying foods, you can find out how much salt, fat and sugar they contain by looking at the label.

Reducing salt

  • Always check food labels for the salt or sodium content. If sodium is listed and you want to convert this to salt, you multiply the sodium figure by 2.5.
  • A product is high in salt if it contains 1.5g or more of salt per 100g or 0.6g or more of sodium per 100g. A product is low in salt if it contains 0.3g or less of salt per 100g or 0.1g or less of sodium.
  • Cut down on foods that are often high in salt, such as processed meat, cheese, and smoked fish.
  • If you make your own foods (e.g. pasta, quiche, and bread) for your child's lunchbox, try to use less salt or leave it out altogether.
  • When making sandwiches, go easy with sauces and pickles because these are usually very high in salt.

Reducing fat

  • Always check the food label for fat content. As a guide, a food is high in fat if it contains 20g or more of fat per 100g and is low in fat if it contains 3g or less per 100g. A food is high in saturated fat (also known as saturates) if it contains 5g or more per 100g and is low in saturated fat if it contains 1.5g or less per 100g.
  • Use butter, margarine, mayonnaise or salad dressings sparingly, because these can be high in fat, or choose low-fat spreads instead.
  • Use full-fat cheese or cheese spreads sparingly.
  • Watch out for meat pies, pasties, fried foods and salami, because these tend to be high in fat.
  • Choose lean cuts of meat and take the skin off chicken.

Reducing sugar

  • Always read the label of any food you are buying for your child's lunchbox. Some foods can contain sugar that you might not expect to contain it.
  • A product is high in sugar if it contains 15g or more of sugar per 100g. A product is low in sugar if it contains 5g or less per 100g.
  • Watch out on the ingredients list for other words used to describe sugar, such as sucrose, glucose (syrup), fructose, hydrolysed starch and invert sugar. The higher up the ingredients list they come, the higher in sugar the foods are.
  • For drinks, go for still/sparkling water, semi-skimmed or skimmed milk, unsweetened fruit juice and/or smoothies or yoghurt drinks, rather than squashes and sweet fizzy drinks.
  • Instead of sweets and chocolate, give your child fresh or dried fruit to snack on. Alternatively, you could try sunflower and pumpkin seeds or vegetable sticks and cherry tomatoes.
  • If you bake at home for your child's lunchbox, cut down on the sugar that you add. Try using fresh strawberries, raspberries, blueberries, apricots, raisins or fruit purées to add sweetness.

Friday, 22 January 2010

Pack an Eco-Friendly Lunchbox

Lunch Storage Solutions to Reduce or Eliminate Plastics

Apr 10, 2008 Tammy Andrew

While packing a lunch watch what containers are used. Perhaps a plastic sandwich box, snack cup or baggies and a water bottle? Or conveniently pre-packed items in plastic bags or containers?

Plastic quickly became accepted as the easy way to keep food fresh and protect it from damage. However, studies are raising questions about chemicals leaching into the food it is supposed to protect as well as the dangers to the environment. When looking into ways to reduce dependence on plastic storage containers, take a close look at what is in the lunchbox and consider these alternatives.

Entrees

Sandwiches and wraps have many alternatives available. A sandwich cover can be made from a paper towel, waxed or butcher paper and some masking tape or a cloth napkin; in both cases fold the corners into the center of the bread or roll the wrap into it. Cloth versions of a sandwich wrap can be made out of fabric remnants (use cotton or linen blends that contain very little lint) with a little time with a needle or sewing machine. For anyone who does not sew or have the time to make them, try pre-made wraps such as from Wrap-N-Mat.com or bellebottoms.com.

Soups and leftovers need a more sturdy container. Metal thermoses are available from many suppliers. They are suitable for children to carry to school and keep the food warm. Adults or teens who have access to a microwave can also consider glass or ceramics. There are many styles available, including bowls and mugs, many of which also have a lid that can be removed or vented before heating.

Snacks and Desserts

Dry snacks and desserts, such as trail mix, chips and cookies, can be contained in a similar fashion as a sandwich or wrap. Cloth bags that are lint free and have a fold over flap are convenient for holding the small pieces and preventing them from spilling in the lunchbox. Another option is to fashion a small pouch out of aluminum foil. Older lunch carriers have the option of small glass or ceramic containers.

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1 comment:

tandrew said...

I am glad you liked my article, Pack an Eco-Friendly Lunchbox, but you cannot place an entire copy of it on your blog because that violates copyright. Please remove all but 50 words and provide a link back to the original at Suite101.

Thank you,

Tammy Andrew

16 February 2010 at 07:47

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