Before you say Bon Appétit to your little ones as they munch on the mid-noon snacks at school, we would ask you to open your eyes and read this very important information on what the lunch box holds. That small lunch box could be an invitation to a plethora of illnesses and sicknesses galore; true to every word we have read and heard! Mommies, it is time for you to gear up and give your kids the healthiest of meals. Here are five lunch boxes that are actually doing more harm than good to the kids, and we have provided alternatives too. Please read on, we want your little ones to be healthy and eating well too!

  • Say no to those juice boxes

So the ads have managed to seduce your kiddies with the fine packaging and glossy talks; but wait right there, are your sure as what the companies claim to store ‘real fruit juice’ in those snazzy boxes- are they real? What about amount of sugars in it?Preservatives and the empty calories? Wouldn’t that bring in more harm than good for the kid?

Healthy Alternative: Your child should have freshly squeezed and brewed juices for breakfast or a whole fruit each morning,or as a mid-day meal as a snack if need be.

  • Baked not fried

How often do we allow our kids to munch on a packet of fries or chips? Pretty often isn’t it? Guilty as we are, kids love them and we really have no choice but to allow a bite or two of the salted flavor crispies to enter their bodies. Remember, chips are a processed bunch of empty calories, and every time the tasty snack is devoured,the little ones would want more. This is junk that goes into their bodies, and the addiction remains well into the teen days too.

Healthy Alternative: Bake your own chips and cookies at home; there are many recipes online that show you how to conjure a box of them in less than ten minutes and with fresh ingredients so fine for the little one’s needs too.

  • Sweets and candies have zero nutritional value

We really cannot stop the sweet-toothed cravings, and we know the zero nutritional value in them too.Plus, there is so much sugar in them, which can lead to sugar spikes and cavities. Do you want that happening to your kids?

Healthy Alternative: Pack a snack of fresh berries, watermelon and bananas. These are fruits that have natural sugars in them, plenty of antioxidants for the kid’s body to use and sodium too.

  •  Ready-to-serve meals can be REALLY harmful

Parents these days area very busy lot, mommies are running around managing home and work. Who has the time to cook a ravishing lunch to pack for the kids; most moms opt for ready-to-serve meals, which are easily available at leading grocery outlets.But did you know how much harm such meals can do, especially with empty calories in them, preservatives and chemicals used to keep them fresh and more?

Healthy Alternative: Pack turkey sandwiches, chicken sandwiches, potato sandwiches or a veggie sandwich with a cookie for the kid’s lunch. They would be fresh till mid-day and the child would have all the nutrients he or she needs!

Presentation matters and this is what the companies out there play upon. Use this psychology to bring to your kids the best meals, and watch how they happily chomp your delicacies and not the commercial ones out there.