Back to school prompts many of us to take a fresh look at what we're serving our children for meals. As children transition from summer vacation back to the classroom, their eating environments, meal patters and food sources usually change.

Life may seem to get busier, as extracurricular activities are also often added. However, the school year's structure and potential resources can pose a great opportunity to bolster dietary quality. Abundant scientific literature demonstrates that proper nutrition enhances academic performance.

While school breakfast and lunch programs have to adhere to the 2005 U.S. Dietary Guidelines to improve nutritional intake, competing food and beverage sources, as well as picky eaters refusal to consume healthful items at these meals, could reduce dietary advantages. A new review in the September/October American Journal of Lifestyle Medicine, finds that parents, teachers and caregivers need to be role models and advocates for healthy eating.

The review also found that for children consuming diets with micronutrient inadequacies, vitamin and mineral supplementation have effectively improved cognitive ability and scores on intelligence tests.

The article also offers some healthy breakfast, lunch and snack ideas for children beyond the usual:

Breakfast: instant oatmeal with low fat milk and dried fruit; a whole-wheat pita stuffed with sliced hard-boiled eggs; whole-grain cereal with fruit and low-fat milk or cup of yogurt; cereal bar with a glass of milk and piece of fruit; toasted waffles topped with applesauce or peanut butter and peanut butter on a whole-grain bagel with a glass of milk.

For brown bag lunches: peanut butter and raisins on whole-wheat bread; hummus and salad stuffed into a pita; whole-wheat tortilla wrap with low-fat cream cheese, turkey and lettuce; cold shrimp with sauce and garlic toast; California roll or sushi; deviled eggs with mini toast crackers; cold pasta salad with pesto sauce, vegetables and cheese; leftover thin chicken strips on a tortilla with grilled vegetables; pita sandwich with vegetables and lunch meat.

For after-school snacks: a bean burrito; cheese quesadilla with salsa and lettuce; yogurt and fruit smoothie with graham crackers; half a whole-wheat English muffin with pizza sauce and melted cheese.

WINNING QUESTION

Q: Should I avoid carrots because I have diabetes and I've been told carrots are rich in sugar?

A: This myth comes from a misinterpretation of the glycemic index. This is a relatively new way of measuring exactly how quickly or slowly carbohydrates, another way of saying sugars and starch, are digested.

The sugar in carrots is like a racecar. It gets digested quickly compared with other foods. That's why carrots have a high glycemic index. Yet carrots have very small amounts of sugar. A whole pound of boiled carrots contains only about 3 teaspoons of sugar.

So, although the sugar in carrots moves into the blood stream very quickly, the amount is relatively insignificant when it is eaten in typical amounts. This information is of more interest to scientists, not someone selecting a vegetable to serve at dinner.

A more refined concept called "glycemic load" takes both the speed at which the sugar moves into the bloodstream and the quantity of sugar into account. This information is more practical, because low glycemic-load foods have health benefits. Carrots have a very low glycemic load. In short, carrots are a wonderful, healthy vegetable, rich in fiber and beta-carotene and low in calories.

Like other vegetables, filling up to half of your plate twice a day is a great choice for most people, including many people with diabetes. Include other vegetables for variation and a broad range of nutrients. —Brigham & Women's Hospital

WINNING WEB

If you're struggling with your diabetes, try this site from the University of Illinois Extension to help answer questions. It's at www.urbanext.uiuc.edu/diabetes2/. It gives a general overview as well as a list of other recommended websites.

WINNING RECIPE

Cooking Light magazine considers this recipe for Pan-Roasted Pork Loin with Leeks among its favorites in the past 20 years of the publication.

PAN-ROASTED PORK LOIN WITH LEEKS

4 large leeks (about 2 1/2 pounds)

1/2 cup water

1 tablespoon butter, divided

1/2 teaspoon salt, divided

1/2 teaspoon black pepper, divided

1 (2-pound) boneless pork loin, trimmed

1/2 cup dry white wine

Chopped fresh parsley, optional

Yields 6 servings. Serving size: 3 ounces pork and 2 1/2 tablespoons leek mixture.

Remove roots and tough upper leaves from leeks. Cut each leek in 1/2 lengthwise. Cut each 1/2 crosswise into 1/2-inch-thick slices (you should have about 6 cups). Soak in cold water to remove dirt. Combine leeks, 1/2 cup water, 1 teaspoon butter, 1/4 teaspoon salt, 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a large Dutch oven or deep sautŽ pan over medium-high heat. Cook for 10 minutes or until leek wilts. Pour the leek mixture into a bowl.

Heat remaining 2 teaspoons butter in pan over medium-high heat. Add pork to pan. Cook 5 minutes, turning to brown on all sides. Add remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, remaining 1/4 teaspoon pepper and wine to pan; cook 15 seconds, scraping pan to loosen browned bits. Return leek mixture to pan. Cover, reduce heat and simmer 2 hours or until pork is tender. Remove pork from pan. Increase heat to reduce leek sauce if too watery. Cut pork into 1/4-inch-thick slices. Serve with leek mixture. Garnish with parsley if desired.

Per serving: 246 calories, 24.8 g protein, 12.1 g carbohydrate, 10.7 g fat, 73 mg cholesterol, 1 g fiber, 306 mg sodium.

Charlyn Fargo is a registered dietitian in Springfield, Ill. For comments or questions, contact her at charfarg@aol.com. To find out more about Charlyn Fargo and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate website at www.creators.com.

COPYRIGHT 2008 CREATORS SYNDICATE, INC.