Public health experts have called for an urgent curb on ultra-processed food in schools after research found the products make up almost two-thirds of the average school lunch in the UK.
In elementary and middle schools, ultra-processed foods accounted for 64% of the calories in lunch meals, the study found, with packed lunches typically containing more foods than school-provided meals.
Ultra-processed products, including fast food and soda, are often cheap and marketed as healthy options, but they tend to be higher in salt, fat, sugar and additives linked to poor health such as obesity, diabetes and cancer.
“School meals should be a mechanism to provide cheap and healthy meals to all children, which is especially important in the current cost of living crisis,” said Dr. Jennie Parnham from the School of Public Health at Imperial College London. “That is not the case at the moment. We need urgent policy action to limit the levels of ultra-processed foods in school meals.”
Researchers assessed the contents of lunches eaten by more than 3,300 elementary and middle school students as recorded in the National Diet and Nutrition Survey between 2007 and 2018. Overall, ultra-processed foods accounted for 82% of the calories in packed lunches and 64% in school meals.
According to an analysis in the journal Nutrients, children ate more ultra-processed foods as they transitioned from elementary to high school, with the proportion of calories provided by food increasing from 61% to 77%, in part because middle school serves more fast food and puddings. schools.
Asked if school meals had improved since 2018, Parnham said the problem had probably worsened. Rising food costs due to Brexit and the war in Ukraine have put schools under increasing pressure, but government support has not increased. Last month, school caterers warned that rising costs could force them to drop contracts or serve lower quality meals next school year.
Current school nutrition standards do not mention ultra-processed foods, but researchers believe they should be regulated to protect children’s health. This will require additional funding and government support to help schools buy healthier food at a lower cost, they said.
Although packed lunches were found to contain more ultra-processed foods than school meals, the researchers said it was important not to blame parents. “If parents like to avoid ultra-processed foods, check the ingredients list. If there are a lot of ingredients you can’t pronounce or recognize, then it’s ultra-processed, Parnham said. One tip the researchers suggest is to replace sodas, fruit juices and yogurt drinks with water.
Dr Duane Mellor, nutritionist at Aston Medical School, said that despite expectations for school meals, children do not always choose the healthiest options.
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“The problem is that caterers in schools have very limited budgets, so they will cook more of what they will eat, which can make the situation worse,” he said. “Also, kids will tend to choose what they like, so it can be a cycle that tends to have more of the less healthy menu options that we offer and eat in our schools.”
School meals should become a central part of learning, Mellor added, with pupils encouraged to try new, healthier foods and learn food skills, including cooking, with catering properly funded so there is more fresh food.
