Did life just get a lot busier? This time of year is always packed with activities, busy schedules, fast meals, and plenty of germs!
Want to know how to support your child’s immunity going into the school year?
Want to know how to make a quick healthy meal for your child?
Step 1
Consider adding a daily multivitamin to boost your child’s immune defenses.
A multivitamin like Xymogen’s ActivNutrients chewable tablets or Drucker Labs IntraKid. Both contain a wide variety of vitamins and minerals including vitamin C and zinc.
** IntraKID is available on https://store.druckerlabs.com/pages/intrakid
** ActivNutrients is available on Wholescripts.com
Step 2
Plan ahead when making grocery lists.
We suggest meal prepping as much as possible. If this means making a large pan of chicken, pot of rice, 2 sheets of roasted vegetables your little ones like, whatever it takes to get through the week!
Incorporating protein, carbs, fats, and fiber can be made simple.
Breakfast:
Scrambled eggs with cheese, 1 slice toast, grapes
Full Fat Greek yogurt with granola, mixed berries
High protein frozen waffles, 2 Applegate turkey sausage, mandarin orange
Lunch:
Sandwich – Turkey/chicken, whole grain bread, cheese or avocado, side carrots or grapes
Wrap – Rotisserie chicken wrap, ranch or Caesar dressing, cheese, lettuce, side strawberries
Pasta – Whole grain with protein, marinara or pesto sauce, add chopped veggies or blend into sauce, topped with shaved parmesan cheese, side raspberries
Aim to include two colors in your child’s lunch! This may be in the sides. Examples – carrots, sliced cucumbers, lettuce, tomato on their sandwich, a side of cherry tomatoes, an apple, orange, grapes, blueberries, strawberries, cherries, etc.
Dinner:
Protein – Beef, chicken, lamb, shrimp, fish, beans, edamame, chickpeas, tofu
Grains – Quinoa, rice (brown, wild, white), barley, corn, buckwheat
Vegetables – Salad, cucumbers, tomatoes, celery, sweet potatoes, carrots, zucchini, squash, white potatoes, cabbage, kale, turnips, brussels sprouts, rutabagas, etc.
If your child really wants chicken tenders and potatoes for dinner, how can you add in some color for added phytonutrients? Think a fruit smoothie with a handful of spinach, a cup of berries, sliced carrots or cucumbers. Even with picky eaters, we can always introduce new foods. Consistent exposure to various colors, textures, and fibers is the only way children begin liking new foods.
Whole Food Healthy Snack Ideas:
Veggies and hummus
Celery and peanut butter
Apple with peanut/almond butter
Fruit with cheese stick
Fruit with Archer mini beef stick
Chomps Turkey or Beef stick
Seed Crackers with hummus, avocado, or nut butter
The less processed foods, the better. The less ingredients the better. If you have an item in your fridge or cupboard that has many ingredients that are hard to pronounce, best to toss it out. Finding the right brands matters as eating clean ingredients supports your child’s gut microbiome, focus, brain, energy, mood, and overall inflammation throughout their body.
A Few Brands We Recommend:
Apple Gate Farms or Realgood Foods Co, for deli meat, hot dogs, chicken tenders
Organic Valley or Horizon for dairy products
Archer or Chomps grass fed beef and turkey sticks
Cascadian Farms, Purely Elizabeth, or Nature’s Path for granola and cereal
Nature’s Garden – variety of nut and seed mixes
Maranatha peanut, almond, and coconut butters
Bare organic apple chips
Harvest Snaps snap pea crisps
Terra Real vegetable chips
Mary’s Gone Crackers or Ella’s Flats seed crackers
Pasta brands – Banza chickpea pasta, Goodles, Barilla protein pasta
Various Snack/Protein Bars for Your Child:
Cascadian Farms
Once Upon a Farm
Clif Kid Zbar
Nature’s Bakery
Kind Healthy Grains Bar
Dave’s Killer Brand Snack Bars
Autumn’s Gold Bars
