Adequacy and quality of diets consumed by participants in the National School Lunch Program and School Breakfast Program: Findings from the third School Nutrition Dietary Assessment study (SNDA-III)

Current regulations that govern meals offered in the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) and the School Breakfast Program (SBP) stipulate that lunches provide one-third of the 1989 Recommended Dietary Allowances (RDAs), breakfasts provide one-fourth of the 1989 RDAs, and both meals provide levels of total fat and saturated fat that are consistent with the 1995 Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Since the time these regulations were put in place, the standards used to assess dietary intakes have changed. Specifically, the RDAs have been replaced by the Dietary Reference Intakes (DRIs) and the most recent version of the Dietary Guidelines incorporates DRI recommendations for total fat and saturated fat.

This presentation will review findings from the recently completed SNDA-III study, the only nationally representative study designed to collect information about the dietary intakes of school-age children on school days. The presentation will describe the usual dietary intakes of students who participated in the NSLP and SBP relative to DRI standards and compare these results to those of non-participating students. Data will be presented on usual intakes of macronutrients, relative to Acceptable Macronutrient Distribution Ranges (AMDRs), as well as intakes of vitamins, minerals, and fiber relative to Estimated Average Requirements (EARs) and Adequate Intakes (AIs).