Childhood Overweight: What the Research Tells Us Nutrition and Schools Food consumption by school-age children Almost 80% of high school students do not eat the recommended servings of fruits and vegetables each day.36 Children who eat fast food, compared with those who do not, consume more total energy (calories), more energy per gram of food, more total fat, more total carbohy-drate, more added sugars, more sugar-sweetened beverages, less fiber, less milk, and fewer fruits and non-starchy vegetables.37 Children age nine and older are heavy consumers of sodas. By the time they are 14 years of age or older, 32% of young women and 52% of young men are consuming three or more servings of soda a day.38 A Missouri study suggested that other sweet drinks, such as fruit juices and fruit drinks, when consumed by those at risk of being overweight, increased the odds of becoming overweight and of remaining overweight.39 Reducing easy access to energy-dense foods may help to limit opportunities for overeating.40 School foods and what schools can do to improve student nutrition Each day, 28 million school-aged children receive lunch and an estimated 8 million receive breakfast in the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast programs supported by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA).41 Efforts to increase students’ consumption of nutritious food may be hindered by the availability of junk foods, the strong impact of advertising on youth’s food choices, and private fund-raising efforts that sell high calorie/low nutrition foods to support ath-letic and extracurricular activities. To address this problem, some states and school districts are limiting the sale of such foods and soft drinks during school hours.42 Schools, which are required to follow the USDA’s Dietary Guidelines for the school lunch program, are not required to use those standards for foods sold à la carte, food sold in snack bars, and food sold through vending machines.43 Schools can promote healthy eating by providing more nutritious food and beverages through the à la carte programs and limiting sweetened drinks and high fat and high sugar snacks in vending machines.44 School food service managers and other school officials report that expanding the number and variety of healthy food choices increased the likelihood that students will select them.45 This is important because, except for meals provided to students eligi-ble for free and reduced-price breakfast or lunch, school food programs are not subsi-dized and food service managers must sell enough food to cover expenses. Dietary practices should be fostered that encourage moderation rather than overcon-sumption, and emphasize healthful choices rather than restricting eating patterns.31 |
