Healthy Eating Policy
Dear Parents
There
is a lot of media coverage lately about childhood obesity and
healthy eating. We have noticed that some lunch boxes contain items
which are of no nutritional value. Children need a balanced diet
especially during the school day. Research tells us that
hyperactivity is linked to eating foods high in sugars and other
additives. This can have a damaging effect on the child’s
concentration and can be a cause of disruption in the classroom, thus
affecting the learning process. Some fruit drinks such as capri
suns/fruit shoots are extremely damaging to teeth which has
contributed enormously to the increase in the amount of fillings and
teeth extractions in young children lately.
A number of
parents have asked about our school policy on lunch content and
healthy eating. For these reasons we are updating our Healthy Eating
Policy as follows.
The following is a list of the recommended foods to choose from for your child’s daily lunch, Monday to Friday.
Carbohydrates Protein Fruit/Vegetables Dairy Drinks
Carbohydrates
Bread
Roll
Pitta Bread
Wrap
Bagel
Ciabatta
Crackers
Breadsticks
Scones
Rice Cakes (Plain or Yoghurt only)
Plain Brioche
Nature Valley Bars
Nutri Grain Bars
Pasta Salad
Rice Salad
Protein
Meat Filling
Salad Filling
Egg Filling
Fish Filling
Cheese Filling
Slices of Meat
Hummus
Seeds Fruit
Fruit/Vegetables
Fruit
Fruit Salad
Homemade fruit smoothies
Vegetables
Raw vegetable sticks
Dairy
Cheese
-singles
-cheddar
-cheesestrings
-spreadable
-triangles
-babybel
-cheese dippers
Yoghurt
Pots (low sugar) (no corner)
Frubes
Yoghurt drinks (low sugar)
Drinks
Water
Milk
Diluted juice
A
healthy lunch would include: water, a sandwich with a protein
filling, at least 1 portion of fruit, cheese and/or a yoghurt.
Friday
Treat – Parents can include ONE item from the following list of
treats in addition to their normal healthy lunch on a Friday ONLY.
Cereal Bar Home baked bun/slice cake/flapjack
Chocolate covered rice cake Treat size bar (no bigger than club milk/
Corner yoghurt (2nd to 6th classes only.) penguin etc.)
Ginger bread man Petit pain/Brioche
Popcorn Nutella on bread/crackers/rice cakes only.
2 biscuits Fruit Winder.
The following foods are NOT allowed in lunch boxes:
• Chewing gum
• Chocolate of any description – Friday Treat only.
• Crisps
• Sweets
• Fizzy drinks
• Yazoos and equivalent
• Flavoured drinks
• Fruit shoots and equivalent
• Hot deli food (e.g. chicken fillet rolls, sausage sandwiches, sausage rolls, pizza, chips, pies, jambons, wedges etc.)
• Cake/Brownies etc.
• Chocolate yogurts (e.g. flake yoghurts)
If your child has any special dietary requirements please provide a doctor’s letter confirming same.
We
thank you for your support on all school matters to date. We look
forward to implementing this revised Healthy Eating Policy with your
co-operation. We are confident that it will help to establish
lifelong, healthy eating habits.
Thanking you.
Yours sincerely
__________________________________
Bernard Mulhern
School Principal
