Since nutrition standards were strengthened in 2010, eating at school provides many students with healthier food than is available cheaply elsewhere. Plus, reducing stigma increases the number of kids getting fed.
An expert on food policy explains how the end of COVID-19 waivers will impact children’s access to food, as well as the importance of food banks and pantries.
It helped that school food service staff quickly changed their preparation, packaging and distribution methods to feed students who were no longer eating in cafeterias.
Thurston Domina, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
The millions of US children whose parents can’t always afford enough nutritious food for their families get about a quarter of their calories from what they eat at school.
So far, children have not been as sickened by the coronavirus as adults. So why do officials talk about closing schools? And what does this mean for you as a parent? A public health expert explains.
There would be many benefits from a national school food program, including a chance to teach children healthy eating habits that could last a lifetime. Why can’t it happen?
Research shows that children attending schools with low-quality food environments, in poorer neighborhoods, gain more central body fat – putting them at risk of obesity and cardiometabolic disease.
As Canadian kids head back to school this week, many will be hungry. Lacking fruits, vegetables and other nutritious foods, they will suffer mood problems, disease and low academic performance.
Students with unpaid meal debts have been experiencing some shaming policies at school. New rules are aimed at protecting these children, but the real solution may lie in free meals for all.
Ravenous students, busy parents, nutrition professionals and school officials all have their own ideas about what belongs on the school lunch table. Plenty of criticism centers on the unhealthiness of…
Canada Research Chair in Digital Media Use by Children and Its Implications for Promoting Togetherness: An Ecosystemic Approach, Université de Sherbrooke