Back To School Healthy Snack Ideas

By: http://www.mealsmatter.org

Smart snacking is a great way to meet daily nutrient requirements that may be missed at meal times.

Children may need healthy snacks to help them get enough calories (energy) throughout the day. So, choosing healthy foods that add nutrients to their diets is essential.

Healthy Snack Ideas:

Dairy

• String cheese and fruit
• Milk or yogurt smoothies with juice and sliced bananas or strawberries
• Cottage cheese or yogurt with fruit (fresh or canned)
• Ice cream, frozen or regular yogurt with fresh fruit
• Nonfat or 1% milk
• Leftovers can be breakfast too—soup and crackers, tortillas with melted cheese or chicken drumsticks can all work in a pinch!
• Nonfat or 1% flavored milk (chocolate or strawberry)

Fruits and vegetables

• Raw vegetables with low-fat yogurt dip, cottage cheese or hummus
• Baby carrots
• Celery Sticks
• Cucumber slices
• Apples and cheese – pears and other fresh fruits work too!
• Snack-size applesauce
• Frozen fruit bars
• Trail mix with nuts and dried fruit
• 100% fruit juice box

Grains

• Baked potato chips, or tortilla chips with salsa
• Pretzels sticks and a glass of milk
• Flavored rice cakes (like caramel or apple cinnamon), with peanut butter
• Popcorn—air popped or low-fat microwave
• Whole grain crackers with cheese or peanut butter
• Whole grain cereal with milk
• Vanilla wafers, gingersnaps, graham crackers, animal crackers, fig bars or raisins and a glass of milk

If chosen carefully, snacks can promote good health by supplying nutrients without adding too many calories.

Remember: Space all snacks far enough away from meals so appetites are not spoiled – mealtime is an important time to connect with the whole family!

Healthy Snack Ideas for Parents:

• Plan ahead and buy healthy snacks when you grocery shop – you will save money and will make healthier choices than buying snacks on the go.
• Provide choices and make the choices you offer reasonably nutritious
• Pre-portion your child's snacks into small plastic bags to grab on the go or put a snack-sized serving on a plate.
• Designate an area in your refrigerator or cupboard for healthy snacks that you have selected and your kids like – let them help themselves without having to ask for permission.
• Combine snacks from at least two food groups to pack more nutrients into your child’s diets - it will be more filling and will hold them over until their next meal. For example, adding milk to cereal or serving string cheese with crackers or fruit is an easy way to add calcium and protein to snacks.

Print our Healthy Snacks for Home and School and see how easy it is to help your child meet daily nutrient requirements with snacks.