{"id":378,"date":"2020-03-22T20:59:18","date_gmt":"2020-03-22T20:59:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/?p=378"},"modified":"2021-10-14T20:19:42","modified_gmt":"2021-10-14T20:19:42","slug":"long-island-city-childrens-dentist-school-lunch-ideas","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/2020\/03\/22\/long-island-city-childrens-dentist-school-lunch-ideas\/","title":{"rendered":"4 Smile-Friendly School Lunch Ideas for Kids"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Children<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

As a parent, your daily schedule is probably a whirlwind of\nactivity. Between hectic mornings, homework help, and the craziness of family\nlife, it can be difficult to find the time to think of new, healthy school\nlunches for your kids. Rushed planning and packing can often lead to convenient\nbut unhealthy food choices, and eventually cavities. Thankfully, a little forethought\ncan help you create nutritious, smile-friendly afternoon meals that your son or\ndaughter is bound to love! Try these four school lunch ideas from your Long Island\nCity children\u2019s dentist<\/a> to keep them happy and their smiles healthy. <\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

1.) Breakfast for Lunch<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If your child loves to have breakfast for dinner, try\npacking it for lunch as well! Hard-boiled eggs, yogurt, granola, and fresh\nfruit are quick and easy breakfast items that won\u2019t cost you any extra time in\nthe kitchen. You can also reheat leftover whole-grain banana pancakes or a\nslice of vegetable frittata and store in an insulated container to keep warm\nuntil lunchtime. Changing up their routine is a great way to keep mealtime\nexciting.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2.) DIY Lunch Kit<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Give your little one the freedom to eat their lunch exactly\nhow they like it with a prepackaged lunch kit. Store-bought lunch kits may be convenient,\nbut they often lack essential nutritional value. Instead, try making a\nhealthier, personalized one at home! Bento boxes or small, reusable containers\nare a great way to pack reasonable portions of your child\u2019s favorite meats,\ncheeses, nuts, fruits, and vegetables. You can even portion out several lunches\nat the beginning of the week to make weekday mornings a little less chaotic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3.) Lunch on a Stick<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Another way to make lunch new and exciting is to skip the\nfork and serve healthy foods on a stick! Kebabs are a fun way to present almost\nany kind of food, from meats like chicken, meatballs, and fish to vegetables\nlike bell peppers, carrots, and onions. In fact, you may be able to tempt your\nchild into trying a healthy food they previously refused simply by letting them\neat it off a stick!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4.) Soups or Salads<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

There\u2019s nothing quite as comforting as enjoying a warm lunch\non a cold school day. During the chilly months, try making meals like chicken\nnoodle soup or beef stew for dinner then packing the leftovers for their lunch\nthe next day. When the temperatures warm up, your child may enjoy a refreshing\nlunchtime salad. Pack croutons, salad dressings, and other add-ins in separate containers\nso that they stay fresh until your son or daughter combines them all for lunch.\n<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Packing nutritious school lunches for your son or daughter\nis a great way to take care of their oral health on a daily basis. Use these\nideas as inspiration for new ways to keep their growing smiles happy and\ncavity-free. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

About the Author<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

At LIC Dental Associates in Long Island City, NY, we are\ndedicated to keeping your family\u2019s smiles happy, healthy, and beautiful for a\nlifetime. Our in-office pediatric dentist Dr. Michelle Ng has over a decade of experience\ncaring for growing smiles between the ages of six months and 17 years. She\nalways goes the extra mile to help both you and your little one feel as\ncomfortable, confident, and at-ease as possible during every visit. If you\u2019d\nlike more tips for taking care of your child\u2019s smile at home, feel free to\ncontact her via her website<\/a> or at (718)\n530-6539. <\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As a parent, your daily schedule is probably a whirlwind of activity. Between hectic mornings, homework help, and the craziness of family life, it can be difficult to find the time to think of new, healthy school lunches for your kids. Rushed planning and packing can often lead to convenient but unhealthy food choices, and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/378"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=378"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/378\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":380,"href":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/378\/revisions\/380"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=378"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=378"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.licdentalassociates.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=378"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}