Rolling down the snack aisle of the grocery store as the school year rolls around can be a tempting place to take a lengthy detour. New school year? New snack. Why not, right?
While gummy fruit snacks the shape of emojis may be particularly tempting, there are better ways to ring in a fresh school year — and that’s with some fresh fruit and a positive attitude to your personal nutrition.
Outpatient nutritionist at Baystate Franklin Medical Center for 13 years Alicia Walter provided several recommendations for students returning back to school in the coming weeks, reminding that it’s always important to never skip meals and to avoid sugary, empty calories when snacking.
“Children should be eating lunch every day, whether it be from home or from the cafeteria, whatever is available,” Walter said.
She cautioned that as President Donald Trump’s administration works to soften some of the health requirements for school meals pushed under the Obama administration — like limits on sodium and requirements for whole grains — that students should seek out those options when available.
One reason why the rollback on these nutrition policies in schools was because sometimes children wouldn’t eat the “healthier” options, leaving food waste and unfilled bellies, Walter said. She describes it as a “catch 22” for nutritionists, where they want to encourage healthy eating, but it’s always vital to make sure you eat regularly.
“If you expose children numerous times to something that is new to them, it may take 10 to 15 times, but if that’s the option that’s available, they may try them and like them,” Walter said.
Looking for a healthy option at lunch, salad is still a quality choice, but Walter added to remember that salad is not enough. She said you still should seek some protein and carbohydrates to help make it a complete, balanced meal.
What she doesn’t recommend to anyone is not eating, at all.
“Skipping meals to try to lose weight is a lose-lose proposition for anyone,” Walter said. “By cutting out important nutritious foods you need on a regular basis, you are doing yourself a disservice.”
It’s not a sustainable option, she said, but rather leads to bad eating habits and can cause issues down the road.
“It never ever pans for anybody, because you need to eat in the long run or it can become an issue,” Walter said. “It can become very unhealthy and you can end up with an eating disorder … and that can happen quite easily.”
A large percentage of girls in high school say they are on a diet, Walter said, pointing to issues with that lifestyle mind set. She suggests to cut out the sugary snacks, instead of needing to feel they need to be on a diet.
For those students returning back to sports teams, Walter said to remember to have a snack to power-up before practice and to eat within 45 minutes of the workout to replenish the body.
Before practice, she suggests something low-fat, but high in carbohydrates. And then after practice, something like a chocolate milk or a lean-meat sandwich can help to aid the recovery process.
It can be tricky for a student-athlete to not spoil their appetite for dinner, while wanting to get their protein or carbohydrates in after their practice or game. Walter recommends something that will satisfy your hunger momentarily, like half a bagel with some peanut butter, in those instances, but she does say if you’re hungry, you should eat.
It can also be tricky trying to avoid the snack stand after an event — they are likely loaded with unhealthy options.
“It’s good to teach our kids that it’s ok — you don’t have to eat from the snack bar,” Walter said. “It’s a tough, tough situation. It’s an uphill battle.”
During this time of the year, too, looking for some fresh fruit like peaches, pears or apples can be a good choice. Adding peanut butter to a piece of fruit can also provide the needed protein lift.
“Those are so nutritious and they really are quite satisfying,” Walter said. “If you just go with it, it takes the edge off.”
As for late night snacking, Walter doesn’t recommend it but said she knows it will likely happen at times.
“It’s an opportunity for some empty calories,” Walter said. “I would try to have people limit those nighttime snacks, and if they really are truly hungry, to have a mini meal. If you’re hungry, make it a healthy snack. Don’t just eat empty calories.”
She suggests foods like lean proteins, unsweetened greek yogurt and dried fruit. Try a small amount of it, and see if that does the trick, Walter said.
“Really make an effort to be the best you can and to perform the best,” Walter said. “Eat right, get lots of rest and exercise regularly.”
Have a health tip for Joshua Solomon? You can reach him at:
jsolomon@recorder.com
413-772-0261, ext. 264