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Wynnie Chan

This week Louise Cribbins, 15
Louise asks: 'What  packed lunches  can I take to school to ensure that I have a healthy, balanced meal?'
Wynnie says: For a balanced packed lunch, the UK School Food Trust suggests  selecting the following  foods and drinks for school lunches:
Fruit and vegetables: Include at least a portion of fruit and a portion of vegetables/salad a day
Meat and alternatives: Meat, fish, or non dairy protein (e.g. lentils, hummus, peanut butter, beans etc) should be included every day
Oily fish: Include oily fish e.g. salmon, mackerel, fresh tuna at least once every three weeks
Starchy food: Bread, pasta, rice, couscous, noodles, potatoes or other cereals should be included every day
Milk and dairy food: Include semi-skimmed or skimmed milk, cheese, yoghurt or fromage frais every day
Healthy drinks: Include only water, fruit juice, low fat milk, milk or yoghurt drinks and smoothies
Snacks: Only choose nuts, seeds, vegetables and fruit
Meat products: E.g. sausage rolls, pies should only be included occasionally
Cakes and biscuits: Should be included occasionally and only eaten as part of a meal.
Putting those guidelines into practice,  examples of  balanced packed lunches include:
Tortilla wrap stuffed with tuna, avocado, tomatoes and reduced-fat mayo, large handful of grapes and carton of reduced-fat milk
A couple of cooked chicken drumsticks, potato salad, pot of low-fat yoghurt, an apple and a bottle of water
Salmon and mixed rice salad with assorted vegetables, crackers and cheese, grapes and a fruit smoothie
Couscous with roasted vegetables and mozzarella cheese, banana, flapjack and fresh fruit juice
Ham and sweetcorn pasta salad with a pot of fromage frais, pineapple rings and water
Keeping packed lunches  free from the bacteria that cause food poisoning  is  another important consideration.
Small freezer gel packs or frozen 100 per cent fruit juice packs can be tucked into lunchboxes to keep perishable items safe until lunch.  Any leftovers should be thrown away.
Louise's Diary
Breakfast: Cereal, toast, banana, sometimes pancakes
Snack: Chocolate muffin
Lunch: Sandwich, meal from school or quiche, pasta or Spanish omelette from home
Snack: Ham and cheese toastie or cookies and fruit
Dinner: Pasta, roast chicken or meat with rice, potatoes or couscous, vegetables or salad
Exercise: Ballet three times a week, netball once or twice a week, rugby once a week and running occasionally
Stuck for lunch ideas?
Kennedy School PTA has produced a Healthy Food cookbook with more than 80 easy and tasty recipes provided by students and teachers.
Each book costs HK$100 and part of the proceeds goes to the Christina Noble Children's Foundation.
It is available from Kennedy School PTA office - e-mail pta@kennedy.edu.hk or call 2872 5114.
Wynnie Chan is a British-trained nutritionist. If you've got a question for her or would like to be featured in this column, e-mail nutrition.scmp.com



How can I eat healthily at school?