While you’re
including notebooks, pencils and backpacks on your list of
supplies for school, don’t forget one of the most
important — a safe lunch box and cold source.

"There are a lot of differences between a safe lunch box
and one that will just
carry the lunch," said Ruthann Swanson, a food specialist
with the University of
Georgia Extension Service.

"Some boxes or bags don’t have enough insulation to keep
foods safe," Swanson said.
"And even of those, some are too small to carry enough food
to get a child through a
long school day."

Swanson is researching the types of lunch boxes that best
keep foods out of the
"danger zone" — between 40 and 140 degrees.

"When perishable foods stay in the danger zone for two
hours or more, their safety
becomes questionable," she said.

Insulated lunch boxes and bags with reusable cold packs are
the best way to keep cold
foods below 40 degrees. Nontoxic chemical packs can keep foods
cold without the mess or
bother of ice.

Swanson said the hard plastic cold packs stay colder than
soft-bag packs. And they’re
less likely to break or get punctured.

"Many parents freeze drink boxes to keep sandwiches or
other foods cold. And that
is another option," she said. "But then you have to be
sure it thaws enough for
your child to have a drink at lunchtime."

Boxed drinks can leak, though. Freezing makes the liquid
expand and that may tear the
box seams. One option for a lunchtime drink is UHT milk your
child can safely drink at
room temperature. Swanson said most children like cold drinks,
though, so freezing or
chilling makes them more appealing.

Using a cold source gives parents and kids more variety for
lunch, too. If your only
choices are room-temperature foods, you don’t have a lot of
choices.

"But one food that does stay safe and is nutritious is
peanut butter,"
Swanson said.

Many children will eat peanut butter on apples, bananas,
crackers, celery or in
sandwiches.

But what about sandwiches with meats or salad-type fillings?

Swanson said it’s vital to keep any protein-rich food like
beans, eggs and meats –
processed or leftover muscle cuts such as roast beef or chicken -
– cold with chill packs.

"Mayonnaise or margarine spreads, as long as they’re
commercially prepared, are
safe to use in sandwiches," she said. "They keep the
bread moist and keep it
from becoming soggy from the sandwich filling."

Parents can cut the fat content in their child’s lunch with a
low- or reduced-fat mayonnaise, salad spread or
margarine.

A good rule of thumb for lunch foods is if you buy it from a
refrigerated case or it
came from the refrigerator at home, keep it cold.

Hot foods require another type of container: a vacuum bottle.
Swanson said a good
vacuum bottle will keep hot foods safe for four to six hours.
Fill the bottle with boiling
water for two minutes, then empty it and immediately fill it
with the food that has been
heated to boiling.

"But you have to make sure your child can easily handle
the bottle to empty it
into a bowl or plate without spilling the hot food onto
themselves or others," she
said. "Hot foods may present more of a burn risk than a
food safety risk."

Other safety factors to watch include pull-tops on food
containers that may cut
children’s
fingers.

Good lunches help your children get through their day and
stay healthy. But lunch with
food safety risks can ruin their day and yours.