Please note: If you are familiar with the Japanese bento boxed lunch, then you're a pro and this Hub is not for you: I bow at your feet. The Japanese are true masters of nutrition-in-a-box, and the variety and care with which the lunches are made are truely wonderful. But if you're not, then read on. . .

I usually ate my packed lunch after (or during) morning assembly at school. I like cold food in the mornings. (Don't tell my mum this, ok?) A sandwich (ham and cucumber, ham and Branston Pickle, chicken with salt and pepper), a carton of yogurt, a piece of fruit, and something sweet such as a biscuit (i.e. cookie). Probably a hot drink in a thermos flask in the winter. You would think that in this age of super-revolutionized supermarket super-prepackaged foods there would be some amazing advances in the realms of what is appetizing and healthy in choices for packed lunches for kids. There really isn't. Instead, there are a lot of "I-can't-be-bothered-to-prepare-real-food-so-I'll-substitute-prepackaged-preservative-laden-crap" alternatives available in grocery stores. You know, the pizza-and-Skittles combo. The ham, processed cheese, and peanut butter cup packet.

If you are making packed lunches for your kids you are probably either on a fixed budget, are conscious of the toxic levels of processed sugar in vending machine snack and drink machines, or both. But you really can (depending on the age and preferences of your kids) ensure that they get a balanced diet in their lunch bags (whether or not they wait until lunchtime to eat it is up to them). You just have to make a few sensible decisions regarding the bread, spread, and filling of the sandwiches in advance, make a timetable, and stick to it. If your kids are old enough (and don't have too much homework each evening), you might like to let them prepare their own lunches under your watchful eye.

Choose good bread that is both wholesome and easy to handle and pack. Whole grain, sliced, squarish stuff is fine. Pita pockets are good, too. The occasional whole grain bagel. If you are European, you will put butter on the bread, if American, you won't (I won't bother going into the advisability or nutritional value of either; I'm simply stating the fact). Either is fine. Or a good, easily spreadable butter-like substance. What's important is the filling, and here the choices are endless. Ensure there is enough protein for a growing kid. Fresh-cooked meats are preferable over pre-packed cold cuts, but are more expensive. My favorite was cold chicken sliced off the Sunday roast, but any meat with lettuce and tomato is good (if you can find good "real" tomatoes or grow your own). You don't have to be creative, honest!

Let's face it: unless you are a stay-at-home mother, you probably won't have the time or energy to lavish on lunches, so don't feel guilty about the occasional peanut butter-and-jelly sandwich, because it's fine: peanut butter is high in protein. And the kids will love you for it. Avoid messy salad combos that will soak through the bread or spill out onto your kids' clothes. Put dry bread and a container of a homemade sandwich filling in the lunch bag, if you have to, but be aware that bread may not get eaten at the same time as the filling. . . throw in a spoon, too.

Always try to add fresh fruit. An apple, a banana, some grapes -- whatever. And a yogurt -- one or both provide vitamins and minerals, and may help stave off cravings for sweets and candy. (But that doesn't mean you can't throw in a small candy treat. I loved those Cadbury's Club Orange biscuits.) One area where real convenience meets good value and nutritional benefits is in boxed fruit drinks for kids. Accept no substitutes, as many "fruit" drinks contain high fructose corn syrup as well as a low percentage of real juice. But there are plenty out there to choose from.

No, I haven't given any really good recipes for delicious fillings to tempt your kids to eat well. Most kids are much smarter than we are, as they eat when they are hungry and then stop; also, the controlled environment at a school ensures they will eat at a set time and then go back to class ready to learn. Really, you don't need to worry about fancy food -- simple, basic fresh ingredients are better for your kids. Oh, and thanks, Mum, for all those lunches -- it only now occurs to me how much thought and care you must have put into preparing them.