Back to School: Help Your Child Make Healthier Choices

Kids are heading back to school all over the country this month. Translation: they'll be relying on the school's cafeteria for lunch. While traditional tray lunches are still offered, many schools have increased the a la carte selections, tempting students away from the more nutritionally balanced lunches.

Although recent guidelines have limited soda and high-fat selections offered in school cafeterias to help curb the problem of adolescent obesity, not every school has been impacted. It's a parent's responsibility to teach his/her children how to make good meal choices.

Here are a few tips to help you:

Make breakfast: Make sure your kids eat a filling and healthy breakfast every day. It will help them focus during morning classes and prevent them from making poor lunch choices in the cafeteria.

Set a budget: Give a set amount of lunch money each day, which will limit the amount of a la carte items your child can purchase. Dole out the money on a daily basis instead of weekly, so they can't spend it all on one or two unhealthy lunches.

Plan: Find out what the cafeteria is offering and sit down with your child to plan lunches for the week. Help them pick foods they enjoy, but that are also nutritious. Allow them to have one free day per week to eat whatever they want.

Pack a lunch: There might not be time to send a prepared lunch with your child each day, but packing a lunch once or twice a week will help ensure healthy eating on those days. On alternate days, they can eat from the cafeteria.

Be a role model: If your children see you eating only fast food and drinking soda, why would they want to eat healthier? Eat a diet rich in vegetables, healthy grains and lean protein. When children eat healthier at home, they're more likely to make better food choices when you aren't around.

Contact the school: Talk to the administrators or board members in your school district to find out what they are doing to provide healthier options for students. Initiate change in the cafeteria menu for your child's school.