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(HealthNewsDigest.com) – This year the opening of school is fraught with uncertainty due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Some schools will open, others will use a hybrid system of in person and virtual learning, and other districts have postponed heading back to the classroom until a later date. Regardless of what your school district has decided, school lunch, this year, will be different than before.
Many school districts are considering having students eat at their desks in their primary classroom. Others may use the cafeteria with social distancing with limited food options and prepackaged choices. You don’t want to add foodborne illness, commonly called food poisoning, to your list of concerns as your kids head back to school. This year you may need to add a few additional essentials to your back-to-school shopping list.
Add hand wipes, surface wipes, and small bottles of hand sanitizers to your child’s lunchbox. Getting every kid to wash their hands before lunch will be a challenge for teachers, especially in younger grades, and most kids rush through hand washing often not doing the best job. Tell your child to use a hand wipe before they eat and wipe each finger. They should also wipe off their desktop or tabletop area in the cafeteria. After lunch use either another hand wipe or hand sanitizer.
Using a soft-sided, insulated lunch box or lunch bag is better than a metal lunchbox or a paper bag to keep perishable items cold. If you pack hot items, use a small insulated thermos container and make sure the food you pack is piping hot when you pack it in the morning. Cold foods can be easier to send for lunch because a frozen gel pack plus a cold drink or bottle of water can provide the right temperature to keep all the items chilled until eaten. Place chilled drinks at the bottom of the bag with perishable items, like a sandwich or cheese next, then put the gel pack on the top to form a nice insulated package.
As a parent, you pay a lot of attention to what goes into the lunchbox, but now we need to pay attention to what happens to that lunchbox and how it is stored until lunchtime. If your child will be storing their lunches and eating in the classroom this fall, it might be a good parent association project to equip every classroom with an insulated ice chest to keep lunches safe. Though your child’s teacher may be wonderful, don’t assume he or she is an expert in food safety. Many times when parents suggest safe food handling procedures, schools and teachers welcome the suggestions.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) cautions that young children are at greater risk for foodborne illness than adults. Young children have less developed immune systems and are more likely to get a bacterial infection. Most cases of foodborne illness are short and unpleasant but they can be debilitating and in rare cases can turn serious. Properly packing and handling school lunches is one important step in avoiding bacterial growth.
This is a great opportunity to teach kids which foods spoil and which do not. Keeping certain foods cold is the key to preventing foodborne illness. The simplest way to teach your child this lesson is to ask them which foods in their lunch are stored in the refrigerator at home and which are not. Milk, cheese, sandwich meat, tuna salad, hard-cooked eggs, yogurt and pudding all need to be thrown away if not eaten at lunch. Crackers, pretzels, rolls, dried fruit, fresh fruit, nuts, popcorn and cookies can be saved or eaten as a snack anytime after lunch or on the way home from school.
Bottom line: Teach children about food safety, provide healthy choices to eat, and pack the lunchbox correctly to keep foods safe till the lunch bell rings.
© NRH Nutrition Consultants, Inc.
Jo-Ann Heslin, MA, RD, CDN is a registered dietitian and the author of 30 books.
Available as eBooks from iTunes and Kindle/Amazon:
Diabetes Counter – the most up-to-date information on managing diabetes
Calorie Counter – a weight loss guide that won’t let you down
Protein Counter – put the latest protein recommendations to work for you
Healthy Wholefoods Counter – planet-friendly eating made easy
Complete Food Counter – food counts and nutrition information at your fingertips
Fat and Cholesterol Counter – newest approach to heart-healthy eating
Available in print from Gallery Books:
Most Complete Food Counter, 3rd Ed.
For more information on Jo-Ann and her books, go to: www.TheNutritionExperts.com or on twitter: @JoAnnHeslinRD.