Children’s Health Starts in the School Cafeteria.

A 2025 review in Nutrients by Tur & González-Gross highlights how school environments—especially meals and physical activity programs—directly shape the long-term nutrition and fitness habits of children and adolescents. Studies from Spain and Japan showed that interventions like healthy lunch programs and school-wide exercise initiatives significantly improved dietary habits and reduced overweight and obesity rates.

Unfortunately, the U.S. continues to face rising childhood obesity—now affecting over 19% of youth. A 2021 study in Nutrients found that meals provided by the U.S. National School Lunch Program often fall short in vegetables, whole grains, and fiber while being too high in sodium and added sugars. Research consistently shows that poor school meal quality contributes to higher calorie intake, weight gain, and lower academic performance.

Kids deserve more than processed pizza and chocolate milk—investing in real food now prevents real disease later.

Next
Next

More Than One Drink a Day Can Wreck Your Period.