A typical student lunch.

School experts are urging parents to teach their children about lunchtime nutrition.

The Texas Department of Agriculture recently announced the amended policy on the availability of foods of "minimal nutritional value" at schools.

This means vending machines will no longer be filled with candy bars, chips, and soda, but with light popcorn, trail mix, and juice.

Teachers will also not be able to reward good grades or behavior with candy. Instead, school administrators want children to focus on healthy snacking.

John Crowley runs child nutrition services at San Marcos Consolidated ISD. He said the key to eating healthy is planning ahead.

In fact, it starts the minute your child wakes up.

"Breakfast is the most important meal of the day and it's a meal a lot of kids skip, especially kids in the secondary grades, and you've got to think those kids are going to be going all the way to lunch and they're not having the nutrition they need to be able to be at their optimum levels for learning," Crowley said.

	Vending machines won't be stocked with candy anymore.

School lunches are created within nutritional guidelines set by the National School Lunch and Breakfast Program, and will always have at least two servings of fruits and vegetables, and foods low in fat and saturated fat, Crowley said.

One way to guide your child's eating habits is to familiarize yourself with the school's policy on vending machines.

Then, talk with your child about how to spend his or her lunch money.

"It's better to have money put on the child's account in the schools than it is to give them cash money," Crowley said.

The changes of foods considered to have "minimal nutritional value" will affect elementary and middle schools more so than high schools.

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It prohibits access to carbonated drinks, certain candy and gum by elementary school kids at any time during the school day, and to middle school students during meal periods.

"Grades pre-k through sixth that's going to allow foods of 'minimum nutritional value' will not be allowed to be given to students at all during the school day and they won't be allowed to be given by anyone, that includes teachers, school organizations, non-school organizations, food service departments, or principals," Crowley said.

The policy doesn't apply to food you pack for your child, but candy and soft drinks cannot be shared with other students.

Be sure your child's lunch includes things vegetables (such as carrot sticks), fruits, whole wheat bread, lean lunchmeat, and water or milk.

But healthy eating shouldn't end after the bell rings, so be sure and keep nutritional choices on hand at home for after-school snacks.

Studies show childhood obesity has doubled in the last 20 years.

Experts say eating health early on could reduce your child's chances of becoming part of the national epidemic.