Evaluating Federal nutrition policies for school meals: Findings from the School Nutrition Dietary Assessment study-III (SNDA-III)

APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

4133.0: Tuesday, November 06, 2007 - 1:10 PM

Abstract #154848

Mary Kay Crepinsek, MS, RD¹, Elizabeth Condon, MS, RD¹, Anne Gordon, PhD¹, and Patricia McKinney, MS, RD². (1) Mathematica Policy Research, Inc., 955 Massachusetts Avenue, Suite 801, Cambridge, MA 02139, 617-301-8998, mcrepinsek@mathematica-mpr.com, (2) Office of Analysis, Nutrition and Evaluation, USDA/Food and Nutrition Service, 3101 Park Center Drive 10th floor, Alexandria, VA 22302

The National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and School Breakfast Program (SBP) are the primary federal nutrition programs operating in schools, feeding over 29 million schoolchildren each day. In the mid-1990s, after the School Nutrition Dietary Assessment-I (SNDA-I) study found that school lunches contained high levels of fat and saturated fat, Congress and USDA's Food and Nutrition Service (FNS) set new nutrition standards for the NSLP and SBP. These standards formed the basis for the 1995 School Meals Initiative for Healthy Children (SMI), which required that schools serve meals consistent with the Dietary Guidelines for Americans goals for calories from fat and saturated fat, with reduced amounts of sodium and cholesterol and more fiber, and with key RDA nutrients. Other policy components of SMI added flexibility for planning meals that offer more fruits, vegetables, and grains, and less whole milk.

To measure the influence of SMI policies, FNS recently sponsored the School Nutrition Dietary Assessment-III (SNDA-III) study, the only nationally representative sample of the nutritional quality of school meals and their contribution to children's diets. This presentation will describe the foods and nutrients in school meals offered to students relative to SMI nutrition standards, and schools' progress toward meeting SMI nutrition standards since 1992.

Learning Objectives:

Participants will be able to

•Recognize key components of current federal nutrition standards for NSLP and SBP meals.
•Describe how federal nutrition policies have influenced the food and nutrient content of school meals at the national level.
•Apply knowledge gained to further improve the nutrition and health of schoolchildren, such as developing focused school wellness policies, and educating policymakers and stakeholders.

Keywords: School Health, Nutrition

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No
Any institutionally-contracted trials related to this submission?

I agree to comply with the American Public Health Association Conflict of Interest and Commercial Support Guidelines, and to disclose to the participants any off-label or experimental uses of a commercial product or service discussed in my presentation.

The School Nutrition Dietary Assessment Study (jointly-organized by the Food and Nutrition & School Health and Education Sections)

The 135th APHA Annual Meeting & Exposition (November 3-7, 2007) of APHA