Meals On-The-Run Don’t Have To Be ‘Fast Food’
Teachers often advise their students to avoid “brain drain”
during summer vacation by continuing to read and take part in other academic
pursuits. The same concept can apply to summer eating – maintaining
the good basic eating habits that your kids have followed during the school
year can help them avoid “nutrition drain.”
“Sometimes it might seem as if summertime is even busier than the
school year, and it’s tempting to resort to fast-food restaurants
as the solution for feeding your family when the kids are running from
summer camps to swimming lessons to family gatherings,” says Washington
Hospital’s Director of Food and Nutritional Services Kimberlee Alvari,
RD. “With just a little bit of advance planning, though, you can
create easy-to-prepare healthy eating options that will keep your kids
going strong all summer long.”
The place to start, according to Alvari, is with a good breakfast.
“During the summer, kids – especially teenagers – may
want to sleep a bit later in the mornings, but that doesn’t mean
they should skip breakfast,” she says. “Kids who eat a good
breakfast tend to be more active and have a lower rate of obesity. Ideally,
breakfast should include at least three of the basic components of a healthy
meal – fruits and vegetables, grains, protein and dairy. So, for
example, a quick breakfast for kids on the go could be as simple as yogurt
and fruit. The yogurt provides both dairy and protein, while the fruit
contains fiber, vitamins and complex carbohydrates. Another quick breakfast
option that’s great for hot summer days would be to make a cool
‘smoothie’ with yogurt, bananas and peanut butter.”
For a more substantial quick breakfast that can be taken on the road, Alvari
suggests making whole-grain pancakes (using a mix is fine, as long as
it doesn’t contain too much salt or preservatives). Then roll the
pancakes up like “wraps” with ingredients such as peanut butter,
bananas or yogurt inside. Another option would be making waffles and topping
them like a pizza with fruit and yogurt. Pre-made whole-grain toaster
waffles are perfectly fine. Either the pancake wraps or the waffle “pizzas”
could also serve as quick, healthy, handy snacks.
“Breakfast foods also can make a quick and convenient dinner for
those late evenings when you and the kids get home from swim meets or
day camps,” Alvari says. “Kids usually love what I call ‘binner,’
with toast, eggs, fruit and low-fat milk. Making ‘binner’
can help you avoid an extra trip to a fast-food restaurant.”
For days when your kids are attending all-day camps or other activities,
Alvari recommends making healthy breakfasts and lunches the night before,
if you can, to save time in the morning. She also notes that it is a good
idea to check out what foods are served at day camps and overnight camps.
“Go over sample menus from the camps, if you can get them, and talk
with your kids beforehand about what foods are good, healthy options,”
she explains. “Obviously, kids are going to eat whatever they want
when you’re not there to supervise, so don’t ‘nag’
them about food. Just try to encourage good eating choices.”
For family outings to local attractions or events, Alvari has additional ideas.
“Carnivals, fairs, amusement parks and zoos are all magnets for junk-food
eating,” she says. “For those types of outings, pack a cooler
of healthy food and have a picnic back at the car in the parking lot so
your day isn’t filled with hot dogs, cotton candy and sugary slushies.
Lean protein – including nuts – celery, carrots, fruits and
complex carbohydrates such as whole-grain breads or crackers will help
prevent the ‘meltdown’ that can happen when kids get really
hungry. When you go to the parking lot for your picnic, be sure to keep
your re-entry wristbands or tickets so you can get back into the park
or zoo.”
Hot summer weather also means keeping yourself and your kids well hydrated
with plenty of non-sugary liquids.
“Always have plenty of water available,” Alvari says. “To
make drinking it more fun, you can ‘infuse’ water with sliced
oranges. Or, you can mix fruit juice with sparkling water to cut down
the amount of sugar and make it fun to drink. Herbal or fruit-flavored
teas without sugar can be used to make ‘sun teas’ that you
can chill ahead of time. Another option is to cut up chunks of watermelon
and mash them up in a food processor with a bit of honey and a dash of
lime juice. Then put the watermelon mixture in a 9-inch by 13-inch baking
dish and put it in the freezer. You can scoop out single servings into
a cup whenever the kids need it.”
At the end of a day full of fun summer activities, Alvari recommends having
a relaxing meal at home whenever possible. Keeping your pantry and refrigerator
stocked with healthy staples such as eggs, whole-grain pastas, low-salt
basic pasta sauces, frozen chicken breasts, peanut butter, low-fat cheese
and whole-grain breads can make meal preparation quick and easy. Plus,
having healthy meal ingredients on hand can help you avoid shopping on
the run or stopping at fast-food outlets.
“Families that eat meals together usually have a better quality diet,”
she notes. “Plus, a family dinner is also a good time to talk about
what has happened during the day. That can be as ‘nourishing’
as a healthy meal.”
Learn More
Washington Hospital’s Outpatient Nutrition Counseling program provides
nutrition counseling for individuals with specific medical needs as well
as other people who wish to maintain optimal health. The program’s
registered dietitians create individualized nutrition plans that integrate
science-based nutrition education with guidelines for changing eating
and exercise patterns to meet individual health-improvement goals. All
nutrition counseling requires a physician referral.
To get more information, learn about fee schedules or book an appointment,
call (510) 745-6542.