Help your children go back to school on the right foot with a healthy, balanced diet, including a handful of nuts each day.

Start their day off right

Breakfast is a crucial meal in the day, especially for kids.

To make their breakfast even better, include a handful of nuts. Nuts are an energy- and nutrient-dense (think: protein, fibre, calcium and B-group vitamins) whole food, perfect for helping your whole family kick-start the day.

Short on time? Try this delicious fruit and nut bread, or our Bircher muesli, which can both be prepared the night before.

Fill hungry after-school tummies

Create an afternoon tea perfect for ravenous children by including a spoonful of nut butter. 

Need some ideas? Macadamia butter on pikelets, almond butter in celery, or get creative with a homemade combination spread on toast.

Making your own nut butter is simple and fun, or if you’re in the supermarket look for pure nut butters with no added sugar, salt or flavours.

More after-school snack ideas

Give sporty kids a boost

Smoothies are a great pre- or post-sport snack. They’re portable, healthy and delicious.

But you don’t need to buy special ingredients or powders, just throw a handful of nuts (think: cashews, almonds or macadamias, for instance) in the blender with milk and their favourite fruit for a wholesome, hydrating smoothie, packed with plant-based protein.

Support their brain health

Children seem to learn more in a day than many of us do in a week!

Encourage your children to fall in love with walnuts to help keep their brain in tip-top shape. Not only do these nuts look like brains, but research suggests walnuts may improve learning and memory formation. Some research also suggests regularly eating walnuts can reduce the symptoms of depression.

Walnuts make delicious additions to home-baked muffins, banana bread or zucchini slice.

Keep their immune system firing

Encourage a balanced diet with a range of nutritious foods, including nuts – which provide kids’ bodies with vital vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and phytochemicals.

Zinc is an incredibly important mineral in our diet, especially for children, as it helps support immunity.

Help keep your kids’ immune systems in good working order by tossing a handful of cashews or pine nuts (the tree nuts with the most zinc) into their favourite stir fry. Toasted cashews or pine nuts also add a delicious crunch to salads or roast vegetables, making them ideal for picky eaters.