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For busy moms it can be pretty hard knowing just what kinds of food your children are eating when they aren’t at home. It’s really tough ensuring that my kids are eating the foods that they need to meet their daily requirements, and also knowing how and when to shield them from bad influences. A good example of that is making sure that you feed them a nice healthy snack before they leave to visit a friend’s house who always seems to be eating candy and unhealthy foods. But the most important place to emphasize healthy eating habits is during school hours; if you think about it, school is the place where kids spend the most time and are most influenced.

Kids can take in so many bad influences concerning food when they are at school. Not only do they see the bad habits that their peers have, there are teachers and other authority figures that make bad choices too when it comes to nutrition. On top of that, there are other things to take into account like the junk food that some kids have access to in vending machines. Things like these can be a real hurdle for parents who are looking to establish good nutrition in their kids.

This article contains 5 simple tips that any parent can use to ensure that their kids don’t develop the habit of making poor eating choices at school. Since it is so important to cover the subject from all angles all the tips are linked in some way, and since a parent is the single most important influence when it comes to developing healthy habits most of them involve talking to your children about their decisions as well.

1. Check out the School’s Menu – A lot of schools publish their menu, giving parents an easy way for to manage the foods that their children eat. I always use the menu as a basis to help plan out what days my kids can eat at the school cafeteria, and what days I make a sack lunch. I actually sit both my kids down and I allow them to pick one day that they can eat the cafeteria’s food and then I pick another. This usually means that one day a week they are eating something awful like a hamburger or pizza, but at least this gives me a chance to talk to them about nutrition and involves them in the process.

2. Make a Sack Lunch – Making a sack lunch is the best way to know what kids are eating at school. For busy parents, a good strategy is to split up the week to make it easier to plan because the reality is that we don’t always have the time or energy to pack a sack lunch every day. A good way to do it is to let children eat at the school cafeteria 2 days a week and make a lunch for them the other 3. To avoid your kids swapping food with other children at school, give them some input on what food or snacks that they want in their lunch. This gives them a measure of control and involves them in the process of making nutritional decisions.

3. Watch Out for Vending Machines – Vending machines are really an issue that has come to the surface recently that a lot of parents really hadn’t thought of. If you can believe it, there are actually business owners that are making money by selling junk food and candy to our children in vending machines at our schools. Luckily for my child, I checked the vending machine at our school and it is actually a brand new unit placed by a company called Fresh Healthy Vending that stocks a variety of organic and natural snacks and juices. I figured that this type of machine is actually a pretty good influence, so I allow my child to have a little bit of money every day to buy a drink or a snack from this machine. However, if your school doesn’t have a Fresh Healthy Vending machine you might want to consider limiting how much money your child brings to school. Hopefully now that the “Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act” has passed, more of these positive machines will find their way into schools. Maybe parents whose school districts allow junk food vending should band together and demand Fresh Healthy Vending Machines at their PTA meetings!

4. Make Sure Kids Eat a Good Breakfast – I know we have all heard about the value of eating a good breakfast, but it really is important for kids to have some good healthy food before they leave the house. This makes sure they get all the nutrients they need in order to do their best in school, and it also keeps them from getting hungry early in the day and developing cravings for food at school (which would probably be fulfilled with junk food). I have found that feeding my kids a well rounded breakfast before they get on the bus has had a positive influence on my eating habits in the morning as well.

5. Discussing Nutrition With Kids – It is also really essential that parents talk to their children about the importance of healthy eating habits. Bring your children along on shopping trips and explain the choices you make when buying food for your family and why you make them. Also, make sure your child knows the importance of a balanced diet and the negative consequences of eating junk food. Setting a positive example is also key. Making good choices for yourself will help your children make good choices for themselves as well.

To find out more about promoting health foods in schools, gyms and businesses get a free fresh vending report or read more about fresh vending machines.