Over time, the school lunch system in America has changed in many ways. In 1946, the Harry S. Truman administration began the school lunch program in order to help all children obtain a nutritious lunch. The assumption was that children would do better on their studies, once they had the fuel they required to get them through the day. The pilot program, started by President Lyndon Johnson in 1966, included breakfast.
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Underprivileged and poor children were given either free lunches or even a reduced rate to ensure everyone had the chance to eat meals in school. In the 2005 school year, over 9 million children took part in the lunch and breakfast programs and in 2010, nearly 30 million children participated in the school meal plan. The increase is significant in kids who rely on schools to serve daily meals, and serving healthier meals can help everybody involved.
The amount of fat inside the school meals was a big cause for concern over the years. The high-fat burgers, pizzas, and French fries schools serve give children unhealthy eating habits. Even with the efforts to lessen fat and raise the vegetables and fruit, the meals have still contributed to childhood obesity due to an excessive amount of fat.
A school lunch reform has been undertaken by President Obama to attempt to change the foods being served to healthier alternatives. This reform is trying to reduce childhood obesity, which should reduce all the health conditions that come with obesity. Those parents that depend on the school lunch program are the exact children which have eaten high-fat foods that are less nutritious.
Nearly half of the calories children eat throughout the day are eaten at school. The school lunch reform is one way to give numerous children tasty, yet healthy meals at school. Children may not do very well if served vegetables, fruits, and grains when they are used to eating burgers, pizza, and sweets. However, not making further changes in the school lunch program will only continue adding to the obesity that’s seen more in kids today than in the past.
President Obama currently has established a Task Force on Childhood Obesity, which happens to be the very first of its kind. It is clear that the administration takes the obesity issue serious since just twenty years ago, obese children wasn’t an epidemic the way it is today with American children. Teaching children to eat healthier choices at school, where they spend a lot of their time, it’s going to hopefully spill over to life away from school.
School lunches have certainly changed since Harry S. Truman passed the law that helped children have lunches while at school. As The United States tries to stop obesity and poor eating habits, the school lunch reform will without doubt continue to change.