healty eating policy
As part of the Social, Personal and Health Education (SPHE) Programme, at Cloughduv National School we encourage the children to become more aware of the need for healthy food in their lunch boxes.
What people eat is known to be a key factor in determining general and oral health. Research indicates a strong link between diet, good health, performance and overall well-being (e.g. a low sugar intake promotes concentration, lessens hyperactivity, protects teeth, and lessens the risk of diabetes. A low salt intake reduces the risk of heart disease in later life).
To promote healthy eating habits in our school, we introduced a healthy eating policy starting from April 2019.
Aims
Objectives
Lunch is an important meal for school-going children. It should provide one third of their recommended daily allowance of nutrients without being high in fat, sugar or salt. It should also provide dietary fibre (roughage).
The traditional packed lunch of milk and sandwiches is under attack from a range of convenience foods like crisps, sweets, biscuits, chocolate and soft drinks. Parents and teachers are concerned about this trend, but some find it difficult to come up with popular healthy alternatives. We ask you to encourage a healthy lunch right from the start. A healthy eating booklet with suggestions will be sent to our family.
The following guide is designed to help you provide quick, appetising, nutritious and tooth-friendly lunches for your children
Bread & Alternatives Savouries
Bread, wraps or rolls, preferably wholemeal Lean Meat
Rice – wholegrain Chicken/Turkey
Pasta – wholegrain Tinned Fish e.g.tuna/sardines
Pitta Bread Potato Salad
Wholemeal Scones Soup
Bread sticks Houmous
Crackers /Oatcakes
Plain rice cakes/ Corn cakes
Fruit & Vegetables Drinks
(Ideally these should make up half of the lunchbox)
Apples, Banana, Peach Milk
Mandarins, Orange segments, Water
Fruit Salad, Plum, Pineapple cubes
Grapes, Cucumber, Sweetcorn, Tomato,
Peppers, Carrots
A Word about Milk
Growing children should get approximately one pint of milk a day, or its equivalent as cheese or yoghurt. This ensures that they get enough calcium, which is essential for healthy bones and teeth. If a child does not drink a glass of milk at lunch, encourage him to have a carton of plain yoghurt or a small helping (the size of a matchbox) of cheese instead.
We ask that children do not bring the following to school:
Snacks known to be high in sugar, saturated fat, salt, additives and preservatives, including the following:
So as to take a proactive approach to healthy lunches, teachers will from time to time, reward children who can show a piece of fruit or other healthy foods in their lunchboxes.
On occasions teachers may give treats to the children.
A very simple approach to healthy eating is to use the Food Pyramid:
What people eat is known to be a key factor in determining general and oral health. Research indicates a strong link between diet, good health, performance and overall well-being (e.g. a low sugar intake promotes concentration, lessens hyperactivity, protects teeth, and lessens the risk of diabetes. A low salt intake reduces the risk of heart disease in later life).
To promote healthy eating habits in our school, we introduced a healthy eating policy starting from April 2019.
Aims
- To promote the personal development and well-being of the child
- To promote the health of the child and provide a foundation for healthy living in all its aspects.
Objectives
- To enable the child to appreciate the importance of good nutrition for growing and developing and staying healthy
- To enable the child to accept some personal responsibility for making wise food choices and adopting a healthy, balanced diet.
Lunch is an important meal for school-going children. It should provide one third of their recommended daily allowance of nutrients without being high in fat, sugar or salt. It should also provide dietary fibre (roughage).
The traditional packed lunch of milk and sandwiches is under attack from a range of convenience foods like crisps, sweets, biscuits, chocolate and soft drinks. Parents and teachers are concerned about this trend, but some find it difficult to come up with popular healthy alternatives. We ask you to encourage a healthy lunch right from the start. A healthy eating booklet with suggestions will be sent to our family.
The following guide is designed to help you provide quick, appetising, nutritious and tooth-friendly lunches for your children
Bread & Alternatives Savouries
Bread, wraps or rolls, preferably wholemeal Lean Meat
Rice – wholegrain Chicken/Turkey
Pasta – wholegrain Tinned Fish e.g.tuna/sardines
Pitta Bread Potato Salad
Wholemeal Scones Soup
Bread sticks Houmous
Crackers /Oatcakes
Plain rice cakes/ Corn cakes
Fruit & Vegetables Drinks
(Ideally these should make up half of the lunchbox)
Apples, Banana, Peach Milk
Mandarins, Orange segments, Water
Fruit Salad, Plum, Pineapple cubes
Grapes, Cucumber, Sweetcorn, Tomato,
Peppers, Carrots
A Word about Milk
Growing children should get approximately one pint of milk a day, or its equivalent as cheese or yoghurt. This ensures that they get enough calcium, which is essential for healthy bones and teeth. If a child does not drink a glass of milk at lunch, encourage him to have a carton of plain yoghurt or a small helping (the size of a matchbox) of cheese instead.
We ask that children do not bring the following to school:
Snacks known to be high in sugar, saturated fat, salt, additives and preservatives, including the following:
- Fizzy drinks (including fizzy fruit-flavoured water, juices, etc)
- Crisps (including crisp - style snacks)
- Sweets
- Chocolate biscuits/bars
- Cereal bars
- Anything with chocolate
- Winders
- Popcorn.
So as to take a proactive approach to healthy lunches, teachers will from time to time, reward children who can show a piece of fruit or other healthy foods in their lunchboxes.
On occasions teachers may give treats to the children.
A very simple approach to healthy eating is to use the Food Pyramid:
Green Flag School
As we are a green school we ask children to:
N.B. Parents/guardians of any child with a medical condition which requires a special diet should contact the school.
This Healthy Eating Policy was adopted by the Board of Management.
As we are a green school we ask children to:
- take home (in lunchbox) all uneaten food, silver paper, wrappings, containers and cartons
- put only fruit peel into the compost bins
- not to bring in cans and glass – for safety reasons.
N.B. Parents/guardians of any child with a medical condition which requires a special diet should contact the school.
This Healthy Eating Policy was adopted by the Board of Management.
