6 Healthy Packed Lunch Ideas for Any Age

Posted by Guest in Foods
As much as we hate to pack lunches for ourselves, it’s the best option to save money and eat healthy. Whether the lunch we pack is for us or our children, there are endless possibilities when it comes to packing nutritious and delicious lunches. Here are some of the best and easiest health food items to include in your bagged lunch from now on.

Fruits and vegetables

This is an obvious one, but fruits and vegetables are always great options for lunch. Cutting up some vegetables or fruit and putting them in bags is easy and simple for lunch and convenient to eat at any point throughout the day.

Homemade granola

When it comes to granola, you have to be super careful of the sugars that a lot of store bought granola contains. That’s why homemade granola is your best bet, especially for lunch. Granola can be made is big batches, can be stored easily and is easy to transport. The grains used in granola are healthy and satisfying and made to keep you full longer, which is a huge advantage of eating it.

Hummus

This Mediterranean dip made out of chickpeas and different spices and flavors is easy to make yourself and a delicious snack. Just blend together some chickpeas with your favorite flavors in a food processor and you could have hummus for a month! The great thing about hummus is that you can freeze it and save some for months down the road. Hummus is great on crackers, with carrots and even on different breeds.

Cheese

Cheese has a pretty bad reputation, but it’s not all that bad if you eat it in reasonable quantities. Pay attention to the quality of cheese when you’re buying and stay away from the overly processed cheeses at the store. If you check the labels and can’t understand half of the ingredients, you should probably pass. But if you can find some minimally processed cheeses, these make a great snack and provide a great source of calcium.

Peanut Butter

Peanut butter is one of those snacks that everyone has in the back of their pantry, well besides those with peanut allergies. Peanut butter is a perfect snack and great dip for fruits and even vegetables. Stick to the natural peanut butter when buying it at the store since it’s full of healthy fats and has no added sugar, no added trans fat and isn’t made with preservatives. The consistency might be something to get used to, but once you do, you’ll never go back to the processed stuff.

Trail Mix

Trail mix is a great snack to bring to the office for lunch or even save for a mid-afternoon snack. Trail mix can be made to your liking, with nuts, dried fruits, chocolate, crackers, and anything else you wish! As long as you don’t have a nut allergy, trail mix is a great source of energy to pick you up at lunch time and get you through the rest of the day.
Whether you like sweet or salty, there’s a snack option above for any type of appetite. You don’t have to run to the vending machine next time you’re getting hungry. Save your money and the calories and pack yourself something easy and nutritious. Your body will thank you later, and you’ll feel better about the choices you made too.

Becky Karn is a freelance writer and health advocate. She’s researched and studied some colleagues who have gotten their masters online in health administration is, and is still learning from their health choices and knowledge of nutrition.
Article Source:http://www.fitnesspros.com/