What Can We Do To Help Students Eat School Lunch

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What Can We Do To Help Students Eat School Lunch?

• Nancy S. Buergel, MS, RD, CD
• Ethan A. Bergman, PhD, RD, CD, FADA

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Objectives

• Understand the factors that influence the amount
  of time children have to eat lunch.
• Understand the role recess plays in the amount of
  food consumed and wasted by elementary school
  students.
• Understand the impact of the length of lunchtime
  on nutrient consumption in elementary school
  students.

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Outline

• Literature Review
• Purpose of the Study
• Methods
• Results
• Conclusions
• Recommendations

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Literature Review

• National School Lunch Program (NSLP) currently
  operates in about 99,000 schools and residential
  child care facilities. (USDA , 2003)
• Students participating in NSLP have better
  nutrient intakes than students who eat other
  lunch time options. (Gordon, et al, 1995,
  Rainville, 2001)
• There is also a significant correlation between
  nutrition and a childs ability to learn.
  (Troccoli, 1993)

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Literature Review, Continued

• Two Factors in the Elementary School Setting
• Recess Scheduled Before or After Lunch
• The Total Time Children Have to Eat Lunch

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Literature Review, Continued

• 1. Recess Schedule
• Getlinger, 1996, Reported food waste decreased
  from 34.9 to 24.3 when recess was scheduled
  before lunch compared to after lunch.
• Concern because only 4.6 of schools reported
  scheduling recess immediately before lunch.

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Literature Review, Continued

• 2. Time Provided for Lunch
• Waiting in the service line decreases the time
  available for children to eat. (Bergman
  Buergel, 2000 Bergman Buergel, 2001 Conklin
  and Lambert, 2001)
• Consumption Time increases when students have
  more time to eat (Buergel Bergman, 2002)

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Literature Review, Continued

• Plate Waste is a Problem
• One-Fourth of public school cafeteria managers
  mentioned plate waste as being at least a
  moderate problem (US General Accounting Office,
  1996)
• It was estimated that 12 of the calories
  offered in the NSLP was wasted resulting in 5.49
  billion lost (The School Nutrition Dietary
  Assessment Study, 2001).

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Purpose of the Study

• To determine the impact of the placement of lunch
  in the school day relative to recess and the
  length of the lunchtime on nutrient consumption
  and plate waste in upper elementary school
  students, grades three through five.

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Methods

• Plate waste was collected and measured for 10
  days in each of the elementary schools studied.
  Three schools are reported on in this report.
• All students ate in a common cafeteria. Students
  in all participating schools had higher than 86
  free and reduced eligibility rate.

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Methods

• Before Service Initial weights of each food
  items were measured. An average weight of each
  food item was calculated.
• Service Each student received all items offered.
• After Eating All trays were collected and waste
  from each food item was weighed.

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Methods

• Calculations Amount consumed was determined by
• Amt Served-Amt Wasted Amt Eaten
• We used top loading digital readout balances
  connected to two laptop computers with LabVIEW
  data entry software designed to enter data in an
  electronic spreadsheet.

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Methods

• Nutrient Content estimated using Nutrikids
  software based on the percentage of each food
  item which was consumed.

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Data Collection Set-up
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Tray Collection
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Data Collectors at Work
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Measuring Pre-Served Food Samples
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Results Recess and Lunch

• Students wasted less and consumed more when
  recess was before lunch.
• Especially true of carbohydrates, calcium, and
  vitamin A.
• Not as true of protein and fat.

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Recess Before and After Lunch Food Wasted and
Eaten
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Calories and Carbohydrates Consumed
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Carbohydrate, Fat, and Protein Intake
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Calcium and Vitamin A Intake
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Results Length of Lunch Period 20 vs. 30 minutes

• Students with 30 minute lunch period consumed
  more and wasted less than students with a 20
  minute lunch period.

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30 versus 20 minute Lunch Food Wasted and Eaten
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30 vs 20 Minute Lunch Calories and Carbohydrate
Consumed
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30 vs 20 minutes Carbohydrate, Fat and Protein
Intake
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30 vs 20 Minute Lunch Calcium and Vitamin A Intake
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Conclusions

• 1. When Recess is Scheduled Before Lunch,
  Elementary School Children Consume More and Waste
  Less.
• 2. Students Who have a 30 minute Lunch Period
  Consume More and Waste Less than Students Who
  Have a 20 Minute Lunch Period.

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Recommendations

• Whenever Possible, Recess Should be Scheduled
  Before Lunch
• A 30 minute Lunch Period allows for more time for
  students to eat than a 20 minute period in the
  study reported.
• The exact time needed is dependant on the amount
  of time students need to wait from the start of
  the lunch period to the time they are able to eat.

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Length of Lunch Period Factors to Consider

• Factor 1 Wait Time (5 to 9 minutes)
• Factor 2 Consumption Time (9 minutes)
• Factor 3 Variation in Eating Time (5 to 7
  minutes)
• Factor 4 Social Time (5 to 10 minutes)

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Lunch Time Formula

• Wait Time (5-9 min)
• Consumption Time (9 min)
• Variation Time (5-7 min)
• Social Time (5-10 min)
• 24 to 35 minutes of Lunch Time