The National School Lunch Program

Act of 1946 as part of a group of requirements to be met by states before they would be

One of the most controversial issues today is the question of how to address childhood obesity. Because of the large proportion of meals that children, particularly low-income children, consume in schools, cafeteria food has been targeted by dietary reformers as in need of a major overhaul. However, while many different types of new school menus have been proposed, the extent to which healthier foods can be offered remains controversial. Opponents to reform state that children will not eat healthier lunches, and that changing the food that children eat will have minimal impact, since the children will either bring food from home or eat food at home that is more 'kid friendly.'

Our bodies require fuel only obtainable from food, so it's vital to stay pay attention to the political aspects that affect how and where we get our food. It's important to note the youth in America have little say in how or where their school lunches come from and how it affects them. This is a contributing factor in the poor investment the current public school lunch program has become today.

Will The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act recently signed into law on December 13, 2010 by President Barack Obama be able to deliver healthier meals in the schools nutrition programs or will the bill overwhelm struggling school districts with additional unfunded mandates? Schools confront difficult issues on a daily basis that affect the learning ability of their students: struggling economic conditions, students from poor families, increased food insecurity across the country, and constant pressures to increase student performance. Providing healthy meals for children, who otherwise would eat poorly or not at all, is a necessity that our country has recognized and planned for many decades. Two measures authorized

Children in America are faced with different choices every day. Some of these choices can be either good or bad for them. But these children don't really know the consequences of their actions, but the school does. Schools are serving unhealthy and un properly cooked meals to children every single day. These food companies make big money from these schools because the schools just buy the lunches so the kids will eat something. The schools don't really care what goes into the students stomachs, but as long as the school meets the requirements it's okay. Then the students just eat it because it looks and taste good, but they don't have an idea of what their eating is made out of or where it has been before. The government needs to start making school lunches more healthy for these students, if not then then unfortunately the number of obese children will rise.

The National School Lunch Program needs to standardize and regulate their set nutritional standards at all schools to help curb the growing prevalence of childhood obesity and other weight related diseases.

        The Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act (Public Law 108-265) was passed by Congress in 2004 (Corbin & McKenzie, 2008). The act requires all public schools, or schools with federal funding, to develop a wellness plan for the students (Corbin & McKenzie, 2008).  The policy is attached to increase opportunities for nutrition, physical education and encouragement of better food choices outside of school boundaries (Virgilio, 2009). While the sentiment is clearly positive, whether or not it works or favors certain populations is unclear. The Child Nutrition Act guidelines are a model, since some schools are not adequately funded, other vendors come into play that do not have the best interests of our children at

For my priority policy issue I have identified National Alliance for Nutrition & Activity coalition (NANA). Within the legislative and executive branches of government NANA endorses a better understanding about the importance of healthy eating, physical activity and obesity control to the nation's health and health-care costs. The efforts of NANA includes, supporting effective education and promotion programs, advocating adequate funding for programs, and promoting policy and environmental changes that help Americans eat better and be more physically active. After a decade of national, state, and local advocacy to improve the nutritional quality of school food, NANA coalition made a successful effort to pass the heathy, hunger free kids act.

How would you like it if the lunch lines weren’t so full but your students all had a filled stomach? Well I honestly believe that if you gave only 11th and 12th graders the opportunity to leave campus for lunch and it would make everyone’s life easier.

The health of students should be considered one of the most important issues in education. However, as of 2012, the Center for Disease Control calculated that over one third of children and adolescents were either overweight or obese. Not only does obesity cause physical health problems, but can also affect the academic performance of students. Over the past few years, Americans have been working together to find solutions for this problem.

The National School Lunch Program enforced a rule, which “sought to improve school meals” (United 4088). The rule includes many different parts to it, which requires state agencies to acquire and check many different pieces of data. The first thing the state agencies are required to do, according to the United States Department of Agriculture, is to “Conduct a nutritional review of school lunches and breakfasts as part of the administrative review process” (4088). By having these checks, the USDA can ensure that schools are following the dietary restrictions as well as meeting the FDA nutritional standards. The second step for state agencies is to “Determine compliance with the meal patterns and dietary specifications based on a review of menu and production records for a two-week period” (4088-4089). This guarantees that schools will follow the FDA regulations because the state agencies force schools to follow and be compliant. To conclude the first rule, the third and final action that state agencies must take is to “Review school lunches and breakfasts every three years, consistent with the HHFKA (Healthy Hungry-Free Kids Act)” (4089). This assures that schools are adhering to the FDA guidelines over the long run. The agencies check the school menu over the past three years, to make

If you were offered McDonald's or Subway during school, what would you say? Duh, you would say yes. Rather than that nasty cafeteria meat, which you don't even know what animal it comes from. Or those nasty cardboard mozzarella cheese sticks, no thanks. I would rather eat fast food, and know where my food comes from. Saying schools lunch is spectacular, is like saying I hate chocolate.

Nationally, about 17% of people under the age of 20, about 12.5 million are considered obese. School districts that serve students food that are high in calories and fat are to blame for the growing numbers of obese children. Although school lunches provide students food at minimal costs, the poor quality of food served delivers inadequate nutrition and is responsible for the rising numbers of obese minors in the United States. In order to combat this growing problem, school districts must limit student choices in the lunchroom and provide healthier food nationally. Although some school districts may argue this, it is necessary to do so as school districts in Pennsylvania and Mississippi and university studies support this claim.

According to the Richard B. Russell National School Lunch Act, the goal of the National School Lunch Program is “to safeguard the health and well-being of the Nation’s children and to

Federally-funded school meal programs, including the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and the School Breakfast Program (SBP), serve an average of 31.3 million lunches and 11.1 million breakfasts per day at a cost to the country of $11.1 billion in 2011 (Food & Nutrition Services, 2012). These federally-funded meals are an excellent opportunity for regulation of nutrition as well as education regarding healthy choices. Obesity is clearly a great threat to the health of our nation, and the federal government must step in to defend its citizens against this growing threat. Children are at the mercy of their families, their social conditions, and their schools, predisposing them to obesity through poor nutritional options and a lack of education; the federal government must intervene through regulation of school meals and snacks to protect children from the abundance of unhealthy options while also educating them and reducing childhood obesity.