Lunchboxes are ‘full of salt, fat and sugar’
A new survey by the Food Standards Agency (FSA) has found that children’s lunchboxes are full of salt, fat and sugar.
More than half of all school children take their own lunch to school but researchers found that lunchboxes often include twice the recommended amount of sugar, close to half of the daily-recommended salt intake and are high in saturated fats.
The survey looked at 550 children across the UK and found that most packed lunches would not meet the nutritional standards set for school meals, which state that they must include fruit, vegetables, protein and starchy food.
The most popular food items found in lunchboxes were a white bread sandwich, which was found in 87% of packed lunches, followed by crisps and a biscuit or chocolate bar. Fewer than half the packed lunches contained a portion of fruit.
Robert Rees, chef and Board member for the FSA explained that parents face a daily challenge trying to get their children to eat healthy foods but he urged them to be careful about what they put in lunchboxes.
‘Small changes to what children eat now can have a big impact on their diet and health in the future,’ he warned.
The FSA has used the information gained in the study to issue practical advice that will help parents increase the variety of foods they prepare and will form part of the Department of Health’s ‘Food in Schools’ initiative.
