How to reduce sugar in your children’s lunchboxes

Reducing sugar in children’s lunchboxes is a great idea for promoting healthier eating habits. Here are some tips: 

1. Limit Packaged Snack Foods: Packaged snacks like muesli bars, biscuits, cakes, and pastries are often loaded with added sugars. Try to minimize these items in your child’s lunchbox. Gradually replace some of the sweet, packaged snack items with fresh fruit instead. 
2. Read Labels: If you choose to include processed, packaged snacks or foods, read the label to check the sugar content. The Australian Dietary Guidelines recommended choosing packaged foods with less than 15g sugar per 100g. Don’t forget to read the label on spreads that you may use such as jam, Nutella and even peanut butter.  
3. Yogurt Pouches: Yoghurt can be a convenient lunchbox item, however, be mindful that the flavored varieties usually contain added sugars. Dairy foods have a naturally occurring sugar (lactose) which is fine. However, if you read the ingredients list on the yoghurt label and find sugar listed in the first 3 ingredients, you may want to select a different option. If your child needs some sweetness, perhaps some fresh or frozen fruit can be stirred into the yoghurt. However, note that honey or maple syrup still count as added sugars. 
4. Homemade Snacks: If you enjoy cooking, experiment with baking where you can either reduce the added sugars or find recipes that replace sugar with things like mashed banana or applesauce for sweetness. Try making other homemade snacks like trail mix with seeds and dried fruit (in small amounts), air-popped popcorn, or savoury snacks like savoury muffins or cheesy scrolls. 
5. Include a satisfying lunch: Focus on including a savoury lunch meal which includes protein and fibre to keep kids feeling full for longer. This could be leftovers from last night’s dinner in a thermos, or a wholegrain sandwich/wrap with whole foods like boiled eggs, cheese, tuna or lean chicken along with some salad.  
6. Offer Water: A 250mL apple and blackcurrant juice box can contain 25g of sugar. Although this sugar is naturally occurring (meaning it is from the fruit, not added sugar) it is still a large amount to consume in a drink. Fruit juice contains little to no fibre and this is why it is beneficial to eat whole fruit instead. Also, did you know a serve of fruit juice is 125mL or ½ a cup? It is recommended to limit juice to 1 serve per day. Instead of sugary drinks like soft drinks or fruit juice, offer water. If your child prefers flavored drinks, infuse water with fruits (strawberries, blueberries) or herbs (mint etc.) for a hint of flavor without added sugar. 

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