Keeping meals and snacks healthy during the school year
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Updated: 10:28 AM EDT Aug 5, 2026Editorial Standards ⓘ
ByDeeanna Robertson
Keeping meals and snacks healthy during the school year
Updated: 10:28 AM EDT Aug 5, 2026Editorial Standards ⓘ
ByDeeanna Robertson
GREENVILLE, S.C. —
Dieticians are sharing tips to keep meals and snacks simple, but healthy as families get back to their school year routines
Meg Miller is a registered dietitian at Encompass Health of Greenville. She says parents should focus on making sure their children have a proteinkely to have vegetables and other foods with vitamins and minerals your body needs
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Plan ahead
She says parents shouldn’t be afraid of leftovers or repeat meals
“If we’re having chicken and pasta and broccoli for dinner, I’m going to take some of that chicken, and while I’m cutting it up for dinner, go ahead and throw it into my little container for school for tomorrow,” Miller says
“While I’m cutting up my vegetables that I’m going to sauté for dinner, I’m going to also take some of those as raw vegetables, throw them in the container, and maybe even do a couple servings, so you don’t have to do this every single night. Go ahead and make two or three servings in one night, and that way it saves you for the rest of the week.”
Give kids choices
Miller says giving picky eaters a say in food or container choices can go a long way
“I take my kids to the grocery store, give them just enough choices so they have some power and some control without giving them full lay of the land that they decide to have candy for lunch,” Miller says
She says giving them the option of “steak or chicken,” or the type of sauce they want can entice them to eat their food. Allowing them to choose portable containers with compartments to keep food separate can also give children a say in their mealtimes
Trade up
As you look for healthier foods, you don’t have to skip out on the foods you or your children enjoy
Instead of choosing Doritos, consider a similar flavor of protein chips
“Having maybe a whole wheat cracker instead of instead of chips or otherys
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