The ride home from day care often includes unhealthy snacks: study

You pick up your child from day care, strap them in and hand them a snack for the ride home. How healthy is that snack?

Chances are it could be better, researchers say.

A team from Cincinnati Children’s Hospital looked into it. Using daily food journals from more than 300 families who have kids ages 3-5 enrolled in day care, the researchers found that, on average, the kids consumed around 20% of their daily calories in the first hour after leaving day care. The snacks also made up about 22% of the kids’ daily added sugar and a third of their salty and sweet snack foods for the day during that time.

The researchers recommend that parents and caregivers stock up on healthier snacks for car rides. Examples: veggie sticks, fruit slices, and low-sugar drinks like water or milk.

“Children of preschool age are in a highly habit-forming time of their lives,” said study author and pediatrician Kristen Copeland. “They thrive on routine. Children often look forward to the car ride home, which makes that time an opportunity to start a healthy snacking habit that could last a lifetime.”

The study was published online in the journal Children’s Health Care.