There's lots of coverage today of a warning from the World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) about packed lunches. The charity says the large number of parents who don't include fruits and vegetables in their children’s lunchboxes is a “missed opportunity” for children’s health. The WCRF cites our national research from 2009, which compared the contents of packed lunches and school meals after the introduction of nutritional standards for primary school menus.
You can read WCRF’s full press release below – and here’s what our nutritionist Patricia Mucavele says:
“Our own research in schools has found that packed lunches aren’t as nutritious as school meals – they are typically higher in saturated fat, sugar and salt, and often contain foods that school menus simply don’t offer if they want to help their pupils eat a balanced diet, like sweets and crisps.
“That’s why we always urge parents and pupils to give school meals a try. And school meals aren’t just good for children’s health – eating a better lunch is also good for children’s concentration in class, and for their learning about trying new foods and what it means to eat a balanced diet. School meals also save parents precious time – we’ve estimated that parents could spend almost eight days a year in the kitchen if they want to make packed lunches that meet the same nutritional standards as school meals.”
Read our sample packed lunch menus if you want to give this a try.
- World Cancer Research Fund news release
The large number of parents not including fruits and vegetables in their children’s school packed lunches is a “missed opportunity” for children’s health, a cancer charity has warned.
World Cancer Research Fund (WCRF) believes the fact that 40 per cent of primary school children’s lunchboxes do not contain any fruits or vegetables – compared to 10 per cent for school canteen meals – means they are not sufficiently healthy.
It is calling for changes similar to those Jamie Oliver championed for school dinners and is urging parents to make sure their children’s packed lunches always contain at least two portions of fruits and vegetables.
As part of this, WCRF has launched an online game, My Packed Lunch, at http://www.greatgrubclub.com/my-packed-lunch. The aim of the game is to make packed lunches fun for children and the interactive meal planner gives parents and children ideas for foods that are both healthy and tasty.
Kate Mendoza, Head of Education at WCRF, said: “There is no doubt Jamie Oliver helped achieve great things for the food served in school canteens. But as the nutritional content of school canteen meals has improved, the healthiness of the content of lunchboxes has been left behind.
“It is disappointing that children are going to school with lunchboxes that are not playing their part in helping to encourage the kind of healthy diet that is so important for their future. This is why we want to get across the message to parents that including a piece of fruit or using a portion of salad as a filling for a sandwich are positive things they can do for their children’s health.
“It can sometimes be difficult for parents to control what their children eat, particularly if they are passing shops on the way home from school or visiting their friends. But parents can influence what is in their packed lunches and the fact that not all of them are doing so is a missed opportunity.
“We know from a recent Ofsted report that parents are tired of being told what not to put in lunchboxes. They want some advice about what is healthy rather than what’s not healthy.
“There is also anecdotal evidence that some schools are reluctant to advise parents on packed lunches because they fear being considered patronising or that an unsophisticated approach would cause a reaction against their advice.
“We also understand that parents can find it challenging to buy healthy food on a limited budget. That is why the meal options included in the My Packed Lunch game have been chosen to be inexpensive as well as healthy.”
Great Grub Club (GGC) at www.greatgrubclub.com is an online club for four- to 11-year-olds that promotes healthy lifestyle habits children will hopefully carry into adulthood, reducing their risk of developing cancer and other chronic diseases later in life. WCRF recommends that both children and adults eat at least five portions a day of a range of fruits and vegetables.
As well as providing up to two portions of 5 A DAY, My Packed Lunch has an educational role in providing tips on healthy eating.
