Students choosing to eat healthier

New federal school lunch guidelines implemented in 2012 have resulted in students eating more fruit and throwing away less of their entrees and vegetables, a new study by the Rudd Center for Food Policy & Obesity and partners at the Yale School of Public Health has found.

 

The research, published recently in the journal Childhood Obesity,studied food consumption patterns among middle school students in 12 urban districts both before and after the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s healthier school meal standards went into effect.

 

It found that the percentage of students choosing fruit significantly increased, from 54 percent to 66 percent, and that fruit consumption remained high at 74 percent.

 

Additionally, the study found that student selection of fruit increased by 9 percent for each additional type of fruit offered with the meal. The proportion of students who chose a vegetable, meanwhile, dropped from 68 percent to 52 percent, but students selecting vegetables ate nearly 20 percent more of them, effectively lowering vegetable waste. Entree consumption also increased, from 71 percent to 84 percent, further decreasing food waste.

 

For more, visit the Yale School of Public Health website.