Children tucking into lunchboxes with double their daily sugar intake


Listed below are six different lunchboxes with the typical ingredients eaten by 52% of children up and down the country every day.
But four of them contain at least 47g of sugar - more than double the 19g maximum recommended daily intake for 4-6-year-olds and almost twice the 24g 7-10-year-olds should be having.
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdFour of them also contain between 1.51g and 2.09g of salt - more than half of the maximum 3g for a 4-6-year-old.
But research has found 39%
The research was carried out by MyProtein.
A spokesman said: "Even though parents often have their children's best interests at heart, many kids are eating much more salt and sugar than they should be.
"And many of the so-called 'lower fat' or 'non-sugar' snacks make up the shortfall in other ways, with a low-fat content usually replaced by a higher amount of sugar, and sugar-free items often containing more fat.
"Our study found that there is a real danger of British children growing up less healthy than they should be, due to the packed lunches they take to school."
Advertisement
Hide AdAdvertisement
Hide AdThe study, of 2,000 parents found that 46% of parents make packed lunches so they can keep a closer eye on what their kids are eating - with another four in 10 saying they prefer it because it's cheaper.
But one in five parents admit that, in general, they're clueless when it comes to how healthy the food they put in their child's lunchbox is.
Recommended maximum daily amounts: 4-6 year-olds 7-10-year-olds
Sugar: 19g-24g
Salt: 3g-5g
Fat: 18g-22g
LUNCHBOX 1:
Sliced ham sandwich on multiseed bread,
Petits Filous 100g pot or similar
Go Ahead snack bar or similar
Dry roasted peanuts 25g serving or similar
Yazoo 200ml strawberry milkshake or similar
Sugar: 49.7g
Salt 2.09g
Fat 26.4g
LUNCHBOX 2:
Sliced chicken on 50/50 bread
Chocolate mousse 60g
Natural fruit and nut bar
Pack of Hula-Hoops or similar
Can of Diet Coke 330ml or similar
Sugar: 26.1g
Salt 1.89g
Fat 14.8g
LUNCHBOX 3:
Brown pitta with sliced ham
Chocolate mousse 60g
Natural fruit and nut bar
Packet of prawn cocktail crisps or similar
Water 500ml
Sugar: 26.2g
Salt 1.51g
Fat 16.1g
LUNCHBOX 4:
White pitta with sliced chicken
Strawberry Fruit Corner or similar
1 banana (100g)
Packet of Hula Hoops or similar
Innocent kids' smoothie 180ml or similar
Sugar: 63.8g
Salt 1.49g
Fat 13.1g
LUNCHBOX 5:
Sliced ham on white bread
Full fat Babybel cheese or similar
1 red apple
Frubes 80g serving or similar
Yazoo milkshake 200ml or similar
Sugar: 47.1g
Salt 1.89g
Fat 11.9g
LUNCHBOX 6:
Chicken spread on 50/50 bread
Coco Pops snack bar or similar
100g black grapes
Petits Filous 100g pot or similar
Fresh apple juice 150ml
Sugar: 54.8g
Salt 1.35g
Fat 13.6g