Title: School Lunch In America: Why It’s Unhealthy And How You Can Improve It
Headings: Why School Lunches in America Are Unhealthy and 10 Ways You Can Take Action to Improve Them
Why School Lunches in America Are Unhealthy and 10 Ways You Can Take Action to Improve Them
Summary
The State of School Lunches In America
But School Lunches Can Improve
Why Are School Lunches in America Unhealthy?
Funding
The USDA Foods Program
The School Milk Program
Unhealthy School Vendors
Why the Quality of School Lunches Matters for Students
1) Better Learning and Memory
2) Improved Concentration
3) Better Overall Health
4) Better Behavior and Fewer Problems
5) Better Academic Performance
6) Reducing Obesity
7) Better Habits for the Future
Federal Changes to Make American School Lunches Healthier
Problems Faced by School Lunch Programs
10 Ways You Can Help Improve School Food
Show your support for healthy school lunches in your community.
Be an advocate for healthier food in your school district.
Start a farm-to-school program.
Get a school garden in a school.
Start Meatless Mondays in a school.
Advocate for more plant-based options.
Help increase nutrition education in a school.
Advocate for lunchtimes that are long enough for students to get to eat.
Contact elected officials.
Students can take action, too.
What If School Lunches Around the World Encouraged Healthy Eating Behaviors?
Tell us in the comments:
What are your experiences with school lunch?
How will you take action?
Read Next:
10 revolutionary ways school lunch is improving (plus, healthy school lunch ideas)
Lindsay Oberst
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Content: In fact, school meals can have tremendous impacts on the next generation, the future of a country, and maybe even the future of our world. The State of School Lunches In America
In the U.S., school lunches have a terrible reputation. A 2009 investigation by USA Today found that meat served in U.S. schools wouldn’t meet the quality or safety standards of fast-food restaurants. And according to the book Lunch Lessons, almost half the vegetables eaten by most children aged 2 to 19 in the U.S. were French fries. Although America’s school lunches have improved since Congress strengthened the standards for the national school lunch program in 2010, they have a long way to go. Most menus now include more whole grains and more fruit and vegetable options and less salt. But they also offer an abundance of factory-farmed animal products and heavily processed foods, like corn dogs, tater tots, and cheese pizza. But School Lunches Can Improve
Programs exist to help improve food at schools, and some schools are taking bold, inspiring steps. Parents, educators, students, and everyone can take action to help students have access to healthier foods. As Ocean Robbins says in his upcoming book 31-Day Food Revolution, “ As long as tens of millions of families depend on school meals for a fundamental part of daily nutrition, we all have a stake in making them healthier. ”