Healthy Airport Food?

As a nation, the United States is failing at providing healthy and affordable food options in airports. Period. I dare you to travel through any airport in the U.S. and find a delicious salad (bonus points if it’s vegan, i.e. no grilled chicken, cheese, or bacon bits) that is not just lettuce, cucumbers and tomatoes for a price that does not make you look twice due to sticker shock. It’s pathetic and it makes me super angry and super annoyed.

In my former career I travelled A LOT. I was on at least 2-4 planes every week, crisscrossing the country: traveling to Florida, Idaho, Alaska, Phoenix…everywhere. As a result, I got to know a lot of airports very quickly and soon discovered that traveling and eating healthy was a challenge. My best option was a granola bar and a very expensive banana. And don’t even get me started about the fact that the banana was usually more expensive than a chocolate bar or greasy burger. What?!

So imagine my surprise when I recently traveled to Europe, had a stopover in the Zurich airport, and saw beautiful, colorful, freshly prepared food - even vegan options!! There’s just something about eating fresh food after +10 hours of travel that makes you feel so much better, right?

I’m not here to say that eating something labelled as “unhealthy” is wrong, thats not what being an Intuitive Eating is about at all. It’s about taking a moment to listen to your body to determine what it needs, and in that moment I was craving cold, fresh, colorful food. Yes, the Swiss chocolate looked amazing. Yes, the pretzels smelled heavenly. But when I stopped at the kiosk, my body wasn’t feelin’ it; it wanted veggies and protein.

I still truly believe that we a have a long way to go in offering bright, beautiful food in airports. But until then, I will continue to listen to what my body wants and needs. Maybe I’ll have the pretzel next time!

How do you navigate airport food? Maybe you plan ahead and pack some snacks? Share your thoughts in the comments and any travel tips that keep you feeling good as you fly the friendly skies.