Each day the chefs do their best to provide an appropriate sized nutritious meal for your child but some days we notice that children aren’t taking lunch at all or are coming back for thirds or more. Either way it’s not a healthy option.
1.Preparing and serving a nutritious meal for you and your family is a great start towards a healthy weight and a healthy future! This involves getting the portion sizes right for main meals, snacks and extras, to make sure you are fuelling up and feeling your best.
Getting your portions right at breakfast, lunch and dinner can make a real difference to your weight and your health. Main meals are all about maximising nutrition with the right foods while keeping kilojoules in check. Get the balance right when plating up meals at home with this simple rule of thumb:
- Half of your plate should be vegetables (think variety and colour!)
- Quarter of your plate should be good-quality carbohydrates such as potato, wholegrain pasta, brown rice, couscous, quinoa
- Quarter of your plate should be lean protein, like lean meat, poultry, eggs or legumes.
It is okay to include healthy fats in meals e.g. nuts, avocado, oil in cooking and salad dressings.
For further information on specific serve sizes for your life stage, see the Australian Dietary Guidelines for Recommended Serves Adults and Recommended Serves for Adolescents and Children.
2.Daily Snacks (morning tea, afternoon tea, supper)
If you are hungry between main meals choosing a snack is a good idea, but choosing the right snack, in the right portion, that is both nutritious and keeps you fuller for longer is important. Choose snacks that are nutrient-rich; high in fibre, protein, vitamins and minerals, and low in added sugar, salt and saturated fat. Great choices are fruit, low fat yoghurt, wholegrain crackers or nuts.
One serve is:
- Fruit – medium banana, apple, orange, 2 small fruits (kiwi fruits, small apricots), 30g of dried fruit (4 dried apricots, 1 ½ tablespoons of dried fruit), half glass of juice.
- Yoghurt – 200g, or try 1 cup (250mls) of milk (choose mostly reduced fat)
- 2 large, or 4 small wholegrain crackers– enjoy with tomato, hummus, tuna, salsa or a small amount of cheese or avocado.
- A ‘handful’ of nuts (30g) – e.g. 20 almonds or peanuts, 15 cashews or 9 walnuts.
3.Sweet and Salty Treats
Sweet biscuits, cakes, icecream, hot chips, chocolate . . . It’s easy to overdo these foods, and many people do just that! According to the Australian Dietary Guidelines, these foods are considered ‘discretionary” (ie we don’t need them!) and one ‘serve’ of these ‘discretionary’ foods equals 600kJ. If you are trying to lose weight, you’re unlikely to be able to fit many of these foods into your lower kilojoule target.
One serve (600kJ) is:
- Two scoops regular ice-cream
- 2-3 sweet biscuits
- 25g chocolate
- 12 fried hot chips
- 5-6 small lollies
- 1 small slice (40g) plain cake
- 30g salty crackers
They really have to be a very occasional treat. But for people in their normal weight range, eating these foods occasionally, and in the right portions, can add variety and enjoyment to your life.
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