Is Deli Lunch Meat the Same as Lunchables "Meat"

I could only imagine how bad the meat is for you when the package advertises or states that the cheese is 'processed cheese food'. That just sounds foul

Lunchables are often on the list of the UNhealthiest foods you can buy.
Sodium has been reported at 77% of the RDA for an adult!
High in fat.

The "meat"? Well, since the Lunchable has a shelf life of about a month--what do you think? Would you eat month old deli meat?

Kids LOVE these things and when I have been at the school cafeteria, SO many kids get these in their lunches!

They are deliriously "easy" for the moms but horrible for the kids. Don't kid yourself, though--they are far from healthy. LOOK at the nutritional content on the package!

So--sure...pack O. occasionally, but I would never feed these daily....MAYBE once per week max. More like O. every other week for us.

Oh! And don't be fooled into thinking the stuff you buy at the deli is really any better--it's almost all liquified meat mixture poured into molds then cooled into slice-able loaves, ham shapes, turkey breast shapes, etc.

I save the lunchable plastic trays - get proper deli meat, cut it into circles with a cookie cutter, put ritz crackers, cut cheese slices into rectangles and add a drink, cover with seran. They don't even quibble!
I do it for cost purposes, lunchmeats as a rule are usually full of preservatives and salt no matter what you do. Although there are some better ones available finally.

We also make our own. My kids just like stacking and making cracker sandwiches. They like the idea of lunchables, but neither of my kids like the way they taste. Which I am glad about, because it's definitely low quality meats. So compromise and grab a cookie cutter. We save the scraps of meat and cheese and add them to eggs or omelets so we aren't wasting food.

Lunchable meat is hardly meat. There are few things worse in kids lunches, then lunchables. Lunchabkes are not real food. They are processed, mechanically separated, pieced together, and filled with fillers and chemicals. The ingredients list could fill an entire page. Do you son a favor, and give him real food! Why not just throw some lunch meat, crackers, and cheese in a baggie? It really doens't take much longer. Take a look at this:
http://www.foodfacts.com/food/Turkey%20Based/Oscar%20Maye...

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Lunchables are the same as the crappy lunch meat. The stuff from the deli meat is much better. Less preservatives and salt. Well and whatever that stuff is that makes it slimy, yikes!

There is a wide range of "deli" meats, so it alllllll depends. Even within the same brands... some ham is ham and its natural juices only, some has water added, etc...
I guy Boar's Head brand exclusively, and know that all their stuff is better quality than anything in an lunchable (usually I buy their Tavern Ham which doesn't have added water and no preservatives, etc). But I still will give my kid a Lunchable once in a while. They like them. I wouldn't do it every day, however.

I agree with you that lunchables are so much easier and my son LOVES them. But I cut him off this year due to all the salt and nitrates in the meats and processed cheese (which he didn't eat anyways).

I tried cutting the better quality lunch meats into circles and putting them in his lunch with ritz crackers...he told me not to even bother it just wasn't the same.

So he has been back to pb&j with an apple and a few chips thrown in for some special crunchie treat...oh, and a juice box.

Neither one is healthy. Loaded with sodium and most are loaded with fat. Sorry, but if you want to feed him healthy meat in his lunch, you should cook chicken, turkey or beef at home. ALL ham is loaded with salt and fat, so while it is yummy, it should be a rare treat for all of us.

Lunchables are rare treats in our house. They are full of salt and extra calories and fat and sugar. There isn't a large amount of really good nutrients in them.
We will have lunch that is made up of the same components of lunchables, whole grain crackers, a good quality deli meat and slices of a nice cheese. My kids often prefer cheese and crackers over a traditional sandwich. They end up with less bread filler that way too.
Buy some cute bento style boxes and make your own for him to take with him for lunch with better quality ingredients. He still gets the fun of a lunchable. You can make it easy on yourself by buying presliced cheese at the deli counter and cut it into 4 smaller squares, same with the meat. Don't have to do much with the crackers ;)

The deli meat is usually loaded with sodium and the processed cheese is not particularly healthy either. And the crackers are not going to be as nutritious or contain as much fiber as whole-wheat bread. As with everything else - everything in moderation. I don't think it's a big deal as a once in a while "treat" type of lunch but I would not make it a daily thing.

Deli isn't really "healthy" unless you get something like all natural and organic turkey or chicken... you know, stuff that's not full of fillers and processed and formed "meat product." It's filling and fattening. Lunchables have absolutely no nutritional value at all. There's not enough in them to be considered a full meal.

If you held a gun to my head to make a choice I'd go with stuff from the deli, even though it's dreadfully expensive.