NEW ARTICLE: Eating a balanced school lunch is associated to overall healthy eating in children

Monday, 05 September 2011 07:39

Free school lunches have contributed to better nutrition equally for every Finnish school children since 1948. Even though a balanced lunch is served every day not every child gets the full benefit of it. A study performed in Eastern Finland shows that less than a half of the children eat a balanced school lunch and that school lunch eating reflects to overall eating patterns.

The data of the study was collected from 531 school children aged 11 – 16 years. The children were asked about their school lunch eating and overall eating habits such as meal times and types of food consumed outside school. In this study a balanced school lunch was defined to contain a main dish, salad and bread. According to the answers the children were divided to “balanced” or “imbalanced” school lunch eaters. Only 46.5 % of the children were defined “balanced” school lunch eaters.

These two groups were compared and many differences were found in eating patterns of the two groups. Children who ate a balanced school lunch had more regular meal times and they consumed healthier snacks. They ate fruit or berries and vegetables, dairy products and wholegrain foods more often, consumed fewer salty snacks, pizzas, meat pies and drank fewer soft drinks and energy drinks. Their eating patterns at home were also healthier, with vegetables being offered at every family dinner and fruit being offered daily, whereas soft drinks were offered seldom.

As a conclusion, the choices the children make in their school lunch reflect their overall eating patterns. Eating a balanced school lunch is associated with more regular meal patterns, the availability of healthier foods at home and an overall healthier diet, suggesting that healthy eating patterns are learnt at home.

The study was performed in collaboration of University of Eastern Finland and VTT and it was published in Public Health Nutrition.

Reference: Tilles-Tirkkonen T, Pentikäinen S, Lappi J, Karhunen L, Poutanen K, Mykkänen H. The quality of school lunch consumed reflects overall eating patterns in 11 – 16-year-old schoolchildren in Finland. Public Health Nutrition. Jul 14:1-7.

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