Presumably if you’re reading this, you’re an adult. And if we may make one more assumption, since this is a nutrition blog, you probably care about nutrition. You probably also already know that eating well and developing a healthy relationship with food are both super important!

So it stands to reason that – being humans, just smaller ones – the same would be true for kids. The kicker is that kids can be picky eaters. They aren’t always great about evaluating the pros of eating a sleeve of cookies (uh, it tastes awesome) versus the cons (debilitating tummy ache). It’s only natural to fret over their wellbeing.

First, take a deep breath

While there is an established link between gut health and brain health, a person’s diet and the degree to which their gut biome is *thriving* are not the only two inputs that factor into academic performance. Kids will be kids. And there are absolutely honor roll stalwarts who subsist solely on frozen chicken nuggets. Just like there are kids struggling with their US history assignment, whose families employ private chefs and a team of nutritionists.

We don’t want to scare you into thinking that every candy bar your kid inhales is an automatic deduction on their eventual high school GPA. That’s just not the case.

Imagine being really hungry. Think about how you feel physically – weak, maybe a little light-headed. You’re also reeling mentally. It’s hard to focus. You’re irritable. Perhaps hangry, clinically speaking. Now imagine a test has just been placed on your desk. (Did we mention you’re back in middle school in this hypothetical?) It’s algebra. Even under the best of circumstances, you hate algebra. How do you think it’s going to go?

Now imagine you’ve eaten, but nothing else has changed. Aside from giving you stress dreams tonight about being back in school, you can probably imagine the test going a bit better, simply because you can focus on the sheet of paper in front of you and not your growling stomach.

 It’s estimated that 13 million children in America face hunger, and nearly ⅔ of kids from low-income households come to school hungry.

That’s why as part of our mission to help more people eat more fruits and veggies, we’ve partnered with organizations like the Community FoodBank of New Jersey, and America SCORES New York. (We’re always looking for organizations to get involved with – if you’re part of one, let us know. We’d love to hear from you!)

A strong start

They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day, after all. “Who’s they?” you ask? Well, basically everyone. But if you’ve learned one thing from our blog, we hope it’s that just because something is widely believed nutritionally, doesn’t make it true!

But in this case… we’re inclined to side with everyone, especially when it comes to kids.

 Meta-analysis of dozens of studies on this topic lends credence to the pro-breakfast argument. Academic performance, ability to stay on-task, and though somewhat harder to quantify, behavior, all seem to improve when breakfast is consumed. This overall takeaway is especially notable for children under 13.

However, for many of the studies in question, the data about before school nutrition was self-reported by kids – so the reliability might not be 100%. Plus, whether or not a child regularly eats breakfast at home might have more of a correlative relationship with overall well-being than a causal one. If you’re getting a balanced meal at 7am amidst the chaos that is a morning with children, chances are you’re from a more supportive and stable home. And those are likely the most significant predictive factors of higher achievement in school.

And speaking of a balanced meal, particularly breakfast, what does that look like? (Hint, it’s not necessarily the “balanced breakfast” depicted in the brightly colored cereal commercials of your youth.) In an ideal world, your child’s breakfast includes a source of protein, some carbs (ideally whole grain ones), and some fruit. A bowl of cereal with diced banana is a good example of a simple yet nutritious breakfast.

While the science does suggest eating breakfast contributes to positive outcomes in the classroom, it’s only one of many nutrition-based factors. So let’s not sleep on lunch, here, people!

Meal prepping for school lunches

As long as your kid is eating lunch at all, that’s a positive. But if you’re in a position to, and would like to send your child off to school with a packed lunch, here’s a Registered Dietitian-developed formula for a healthy, balanced meal that fits nicely in a lunch box, and doesn’t require a ton of prep.

Introducing the “Lunchbox 5!”

• A fruit

• A veggie

• A source of protein

• A carbohydrate

• A fun food

And what that looks like in practice is something like the following examples:

• A PB&J sandwich (protein from the peanut butter, carbs from the bread and jelly – bonus points if it’s whole grain bread); some baby carrots; a banana; and the fun food is your call, but we’re partial to kencko gumdrops! 

• A parfait (protein from yogurt, carbs from granola, fruit in the form of berries – and this can be packed deconstructed); celery sticks; again… our famous gumdrops.

• A medley of finger foods: crackers; sliced cucumber; hummus; an apple; cubed or sliced cheese; gumdrops.