Check out the ingredient list: Back-to-school lunches our dietitian is giving an A+

MILWAUKEE -- Kids are back to school -- and parents need to feed their minds. Registered dietitian Lisa Grudzielanek with Your Tasty Life joins Real Milwaukee to make packing healthy school lunches easy.

Several recent studies have established that children who eat nutritionally sound have greater concentration and score significantly better on standardized tests. Here's the problem-- researchers at the University of Texas found that more than half of parents scored an' F' when packing a lunch! Here are some tips for packing a nutritious, delicious, energy-packed lunch.

Healthy Lunch Criteria:

#1 Select Wholesome Foods
• Check out the ingredient list. Do you normally have those ingredients in your pantry?
• Contains 100% whole grains.
• Contains no artificial sweeteners or artificial food color.
• Limit products with added sugar as one of the first 3 ingredients.

#2 Aim to include food from several food groups
o Protein, whole grains, fruit, vegetable, & dairy/fortified non-dairy beverage.

#3 Pack lunch the night before for a smoother morning routine
o Allow children to participate in age appropriate prep and offer choices between items in a food group i.e. strawberries or blueberries

Three Lunchbox Super Stars
1) Protein Power Lunch Box
2) DIY Nacho Lunch Box
3) Chipotle Ranch Quesadillas and Pepper Boats