The school breakfast program: a view of the present and preparing for the future-a commentary

Cost-effective Analyses of an Urban Public School District's Classroom Breakfast Program

BACKGROUND

We assessed the cost-effectiveness and student outcomes related to providing breakfast in the classroom (BIC) setting versus breakfast in the traditional school cafeteria (Cafe).

METHODS

The sample included 2906 African American and Hispanic students attending urban elementary and middle schools in a city in the Northeastern United States. Teachers and other school personnel completed interviews. Teachers completed an online survey.

RESULTS

School absences were lower for students in the BIC program than in the Cafe program. The school suspension rate was lower for the BIC students than the Cafe students. A larger percentage of BIC students (80%) ate breakfast than Cafe students (30%). The BIC program was more cost-effective than the Cafe program.

CONCLUSIONS

Our findings demonstrate that low-income students in the BIC program showed improved attendance and increased breakfast consumption. Students who consume a healthy in-class breakfast may develop better eating habits and academic performance.

The changing role of Australian primary schools in providing breakfast to students: A qualitative study

ISSUE ADDRESSED

In recent years, state governments throughout Australia have provided significant funding to support the expansion of school breakfast programs (SBPs), in response to concerns about children arriving at school hungry. This study investigated how schools have responded to the growing expectation that they provide breakfast for students.

METHODS

This qualitative study draws on case studies of five Australian primary schools that operate SBPs. Interviews or focus groups were conducted with 78 children, parents, staff, volunteers and funders and data underwent thematic analysis.

RESULTS

Three key themes were identified: Adjusting to the changing role of schools, SBPs reflecting the school's culture, Schools as an alternative or additional site for breakfast. Some staff and parents expressed unease about SBPs shifting responsibility for breakfast provision from parents to schools but were committed to supporting vulnerable students as part of the broader school culture. SBPs were found to provide an alternative or additional site for breakfast consumption for many children not experiencing food insecurity.

CONCLUSION

The expectation that schools provide breakfast has created some challenges and tensions that have not been fully resolved. The adoption of an inclusive approach, undertaken to ensure students were not stigmatised for attendance, had resulted in concerns about the resources used by the programs as well as over-consumption of breakfast by some students. SO WHAT?: Increasingly, Australian schools are providing breakfast for students. Concerns about shifting responsibility and over-consumption could be addressed if schools were given more advice on program management by government and non-government funding bodies.

Universal school lunch programme closes a socioeconomic gap in fruit and vegetable intakes among school children in Japan

Background

Universal school lunch programmes are expected to cover all children equally, compared with selective programmes that may stigmatize socially vulnerable children. However, the effectiveness of universal programmes in closing dietary disparity has not been empirically proven. We evaluated whether Japan's universal school lunch programmes contribute to a reduction in the socioeconomic status (SES)-related gradient in fruit and vegetable intakes.

Methods

We analyzed data for 719 school children aged 6-12 years in a population-based survey conducted in the greater Tokyo metropolitan area. We measured dietary intakes using a validated self-administered brief diet history questionnaire for young children (BDHQ-10 y). We assessed parental education, annual household income and maternal employment status as SES indicators of children. We used multiple regression to estimate mean fruit and vegetable intakes by parental education and household income, and the contribution of school lunch to reducing the SES-related gradient in fruit and vegetable intakes.

Results

Compared with children with high maternal education (>15 years), those with low maternal education (<13 years) had less vegetable intake by 22.3 g/1000 kcal (95% confidence interval = 12.5, 32.2) and less fruit intake by 7.5 g/1000 kcal (95% confidence interval = -2.4, 17.3). However, fruit and vegetable intakes from school lunch did not vary by SES, indicating that school lunch intake alleviated the SES-related gradient of total vegetable intake by 9.9% and that of fruit intake by 3.4%.

Conclusions

Universal school lunch programmes can partially contribute to a reduction in the SES-related gradient in dietary intakes.

Building healthy eating habits in childhood: a study of the attitudes, knowledge and dietary habits of schoolchildren in Malaysia

Background

Overweight and obesity have increased rapidly in incidence to become a global issue today. Overweight and obesity problems are significantly linked to unhealthy dietary patterns, physical inactivity and misperception of body image. This study aimed to determine whether Malaysian children build healthy eating habits from childhood.

Methods

A survey on eating habits was conducted among primary school students in standards 4 to 6 in the state of Selangor, Malaysia. The findings of the study were reported in the form of descriptive statistics involving frequencies and percentages. Data from 400 respondents were analyzed.

Results

Our findings showed that the students understood the definition of healthy food and the types of food that are considered healthy. Although the students knew that food such as deep-fried drumsticks and hamburgers contain a high amount of saturated fat and cholesterol, these foods were still consumed by them. There was also a high consumption of foods that are fried and contain sugar, salt and saturated fat. In choosing food, two major factors contributed to the students’ decisions: cleanliness (65.8%) and the preference of their parents (12.3%).

Discussion

Our findings indicate that by implementing the Integrated School Health Program (ISHP) properly, students’ eating habits can be improved by creating a school with a healthy environment.

The School Food Environment and Obesity Prevention: Progress Over the Last Decade

The school food environment-including when and where children obtain food and the types of options available during the school day-plays an important role in children's consumption patterns. Thus, childhood obesity prevention efforts often focus on altering the school food environment as a mechanism for improving student dietary intake. This review examines the role school food programs and policies play in improving children's diet, weight, and health. Overall, research suggests that significant improvements have been made in school nutrition policies and programs. Due to the recent program changes made as a result of the 2010 Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, an emphasis was placed on research conducted over the past decade and especially on the evaluation of foods and beverages served and sold since implementation of this national law. This review also examines remaining gaps in the literature and opportunities for further improvements in school food programs and policies.