Meg Bohne, Consumer Reports, recently sent out an email that astonished us with facts.

“… Consumer Reports recent tests of Lunchables found high levels of lead and sodium. And Lunchables similar to those we tested are eligible right now to be served to 30 million children in the National School Lunch Program!”

Check this out too. “... We tested store-bought Lunchables made by Kraft-Heinz, and similar kits from Armour LunchMakers, Good & Gather, Greenfield Natural Meat Co., and Oscar Mayer. We found lead, cadmium, or both in all, as well as plastic chemical phthalates in every kit we tested (except Lunchables Extra Cheesy Pizza). And since processed meats, cheese, and crackers/pizza – the mainstay of these kits – are among the highest sodium foods, they took up nearly a quarter to half of a child’s daily limit for sodium…”

Also”…Even in small amounts, lead and cadmium can cause developmental problems in children. While none of the kits exceeded any federal limit, five of the 12 we tested would expose someone to 50 percent or more of California’s maximum allowable dose level for lead or cadmium – currently the most protective standard. And eating too much sodium can lead to high blood pressure: about 14 percent of children and teens have prehypertension or hypertension, according to a recent study…”

We don’t think anybody should regularly eat these products. And they definitely shouldn’t be considered a healthy school lunch that can be served to our kids on the daily… ”

Back in the day when we were little kids having fun bringing our home lunch to the lunch room only to see that one of the kids brought Lunchables and suddenly they’re the coolest kid at the table. If you don’t know what they are then a quick summary would be that they are just these small packets with either crackers, cheese with ham, or a cold mini pizza set with tomato sauce, cheese, and small pepperoni.

I am glad Consumer Reports stood up for children. Let’s all hope something is done to correct this atrocity soon.

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