Getting your kids ready for a new school year isn’t just about new pencils and school shoes but also about giving them what they need to make the most out of the school day.
A great starting point for this is nutrition, eating the right foods will improve their health, reduce the chance of getting colds and illness and give them enough energy to get through the day.
Talking to your kids about nutrition and how different foods make their body feel is also a great learning tool and may help them experiment with different foods types.
These are our five top tips for back-to-school fuel:
1. Make breakfast part of the routine
It's a simple fact — eating a healthy breakfast helps students do better in school.
Research shows that students who eat breakfast show improved cognitive performance. This relates to better attendance, behaviour, and academic performance.
A breakfast containing good carbohydrates and protein is ideal, organic oats, organic low sugar cereal and savoury toast all are great. however, many children struggle to eat breakfast so an on the go option is needed.
Life can be made easier if these are already prepared the night before. Yoghurt cups topped with cereal or fruit, breakfast muffins, smoothies and oat balls are all great.
Try our strawberry energy balls:
These pretty little balls pack a powerful energy punch that all the family will enjoy. With no added sugar and all-natural ingredients, these will become a breakfast, lunch, and snack favourite!
You will need:
1 small punnet strawberries
1 cup oats
3/4 cup grated coconut
5 dates
1/2 cup cashew nuts
2 Britt's Superfoods Elixir Vitality sachets
In a blended blitz all ingredients except coconut. When blended it should reach a soft dough-like consistency. Add a little of the coconut and place it in the fridge to firm.
After 20 mins remove from fridge and roll into ball shapes and cover in the coconut to give a good coating.
2. Ensure your kids drink plenty of water
Dehydration can make the body slow down and make it difficult to think, energy diminishes and concentration wanes. Sending your kids to school with 1-2 water bottles daily is one of the easiest and healthiest options. Adding freshly squeezed lemon and lime can add flavour and aid in digestion.
Research shows 61% of children and 75% of adolescents did not consume enough water from fluids. and that there is a positive relationship between water intake and cognitive performance.
Water is great for healthy bones, joints, teeth and blood circulation and isn’t harmful like some sodas and soft drink can be. As children tend to run around a lot and are active, making water readily available will ensure that they can remain productive during the school day and beyond.
3. Pack a power packed lunch
Topping up on nutrition at lunchtime is essential but ensuring you get the correct balance and that your child will eat it can be tricky. According to the NHS Ideally a lunchbox should include
- Starchy foods like bread, rice, potatoes or pasta
- Protein foods like meat, fish, eggs or beans
- A dairy item, like cheese or yogurt
- Vegetables or salad and a portion of fruit
Being creative with these food groups can make sure that your child gets all the nutrition you need. You could try some of these ideas:
- Fruit or vegetable kebabs
- Mexican tortilla wraps instead of sandwiches
- Whole wheat pizza slices
- Bento style-lots of small cubes of food, i.e. cucumber, cheese, carrot etc with hummus or peanut butter
- Savoury muffins
- Vegetable bread
Try this vegetable bread:
- 265 g self-raising flour
- 1 tsp bi-carb soda
- pinch of salt
- 1 tsp ground cinnamon
- 215 g caster sugar
- 3 eggs, lightly beaten room temperature
- 120 g coconut oil, melted
- 2 grated carrots
- 1 grated courgette
- 1 grated apple
- 1 Britt’s superfoods apple ginger and turmeric juice
Add the beaten eggs and the melted coconut oil and mix together.
Add the grated carrot, courgette and apple and mix through.
Spoon into bread tin and bake for 50-60 mins .Pour Britt’s Superfoods juice on top.
4. Give your children probiotic foods
80% of our immune system is in the gut and the balance between good and bad bacteria is very delicate. Eating processed foods and sugary drinks can upset this balance easily.
Adding probiotics to your child’s routine can have a great effect on the gut and this then helps the immune system, sleep patterns and general mood.
Try including:
- Dairy-free yogurt or kefir
- Pickled vegetables
- Sauerkraut
- Miso
- Apple cider vinegar
5. Make sure children get enough sleep
It’s commonly accepted that to perform well you need to get enough sleep. The amount of sleep varies by age but on average for school-age children ages 6-12 years, it’s9-11 hours of sleep. For teens, the recommended amount of sleep is 8-10 hours per day.
Research has shown that without consistent sleep children struggle with memory tasks, emotional issue, problem solving, and all of this affects their academic achievements. Thinking of sleep as an additional fuel source and realising its importance can help give your child the boost they need.
Ensuring that your child has enough fuel to have a productive day can seem daunting but by implementing the above steps you can be sure that they will be heading in the right direction.
Adding a superfood juice to your child’s routine can be an easy way to ensure that they get a nutritional boost, we make this simple for you by supplying one portion sachets directly to your door. Did you know that our wheatgrass juice sachet contains the equivalent nutritional value of three heads of broccoli? To order yours visit our shop today.
