While nurses are there every day of the week, urging you to eat so that you can keep up your strength and advising you what foods you should and shouldn’t be downing, they are notoriously poor eaters themselves when on the job! Many work 12 hour shifts, which leaves little times for breaks, and after that length of time without eating, you can become sluggish, physically as well as mentally. If you aren’t going to take a break, at least pack some healthy grab ‘n go snacks for busy nurses!

True Story – More Often than Not

Before getting into some of those healthy foods you should be packing, let’s take a look at your resumé! You created a resumé that got you the job of your dreams, you are working as a registered nurse, going to school online when you are off work and most of the time taking care of a family, all at the same time. Yes, it’s understandable that you have the opportunity to advance that BSN to DNP online while doing a million other things, but the true story is that you are overburdening your body’s defense mechanisms and soon you’ll be in need of your own nurse! Take a step back and think about what you are doing to yourself. What good will a nurse practitioner doctorate degree do you if you are too sick to practice?

Now for Those Healthy Snacks!

No matter which doctor of nurse practitioner programs you decide to go with, online or on-campus, you know good and well that you need to eat at least three small and healthy meals daily with a couple snacks scattered between. If you are living on grab ‘n go foods, then you need at least 6 snacks separated by a couple hours in between each and snacks that are low in saturated fats, sodium, simple sugars and literally empty calories. Try a few of the following:

• Lectin-Free Protein Bars– you can find a great list of options when clicking the link
• Almonds – great source of protein and ‘healthy fats’.
• Cheese sticks – get the low fat variety because they are still high in protein.
• Fruits – try to stay away from fruits high in simple sugar like peaches and bananas!
• Veggie sticks and low fat dip – pack a few carrots and celery stalks and keep low fat dressing in the fridge in your nurses break room. A great grab ‘n go snack even without the dressing.
• Granola (high protein) bars – try finding those sweetened with honey if possible, not so much because they are lower in sugar, but because honey is better for you than processed white sugar.

And those are just a few ideas. The point is, you can find healthy snacks if you look for them and they are easy to eat on the run. Some nurses buy flour tortillas and make healthy wraps that can be eaten on the run. Depending on what you wrap in the tortilla, you really could fit all of your food groups in that one handy little shell.

So, you don’t have time for lunch? Pack a few healthy grab ‘n go snacks and you, too, will be good to go!