scholarly journals Universal School Meals and Associations with Student Participation, Attendance, Academic Performance, Diet Quality, Food Security, and Body Mass Index: A Systematic Review

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 911 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juliana F. W. Cohen ◽  
Amelie A. Hecht ◽  
Gabriella M. McLoughlin ◽  
Lindsey Turner ◽  
Marlene B. Schwartz
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Body Mass Index ◽  
Academic Performance ◽  
School Districts ◽  
Diet Quality ◽  
Lower Income ◽  
School Meals ◽  
School Meal ◽  
Free School ◽  
School Finances

The school environment plays an important role in children’s diets and overall health, and policies for universal free school meals have the potential to contribute to positive child health outcomes. This systematic review evaluates studies examining the association between universal free school meals and students’ school meal participation rates, diets, attendance, academic performance, and Body Mass Index (BMI), as well as school finances. The search was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA). A search for studies published in economically developed countries published through December 2020 was performed in PubMed, Education Resources Information Center (ERIC), Thomson Reuters’ Web of Science, and Academic Search Ultimate, followed by examining the references in the resultant literature. A total of 47 studies were identified and the Newcastle-Ottawa Scale (NOS) was applied to assess bias. Nearly all studies examining universal free school meals found positive associations with school meal participation. Most studies examining universal free school meals that included free lunch found positive associations with diet quality, food security, and academic performance; however, the findings of studies examining only universal free breakfast were mixed. Research findings were similarly mixed when examining attendance as an outcome. Concerns about adverse outcomes on student BMI were not supported by the literature; in fact, several studies detected a potentially protective effect of universal free school meals on BMI. Research examining the impact of universal free meals on school finances was limited, but suggest that lower-income school districts in the U.S. may have positive financial outcomes from participation in universal free school meal provisions. Additionally, providing free meals to students may be associated with improved household incomes, particularly among lower-income families with children. Further research is needed to examine the financial implications of universal free meals for both school districts and families. Overall, universal free school meals may have multiple benefits for students and countries should consider universal free school meal provisions with strong nutrition guidelines. (PROSPERO registration: CRD42020221782).

Forty days of free school meals as a tool for introducing market-based healthy school meal systems in 35 Danish schools

2011 ◽  
Vol 131 (6) ◽  
pp. 280-282
Author(s):  
N Brinck ◽  
M Weinreich Hansen ◽  
N Heine Kristensen
Keyword(s):  
Health Promotion ◽  
Data Collection ◽  
Service System ◽  
Qualitative Interviews ◽  
Food Preparation ◽  
School Meals ◽  
School Meal ◽  
Free School ◽  
System Concept ◽  
Key Players

Aims: When approaching school meal systems, different concepts can guide the design of the food preparation and serving activities. This paper presents a government-planned intervention concept of 40 days of free school meals. The argument behind this intervention was to kick-start the implementation of healthy school meal systems in Danish schools. This paper argues that the initiative (in reality) invited the establishment of a service system concept, which dominated the initiative and led to a lack of involvement of important key players needed in health promotion. Methods: The method used for data collection was semi-structured, qualitative interviews. Results: The main results from a systematic examination of the 35 participating schools show that the systems were mainly organized with external suppliers, and only a few of the 35 schools succeeded in establishing a user-paid school meal system afterwards. Conclusions: The established meal systems contained a lack of embedding factors, which is pointed to as one of the main challenges to a user-financed school meal system. The experiences of these 35 participating schools show that a period of free school meals is not a sustainable tool for achieving the goal of establishing new, healthy and user-paid school meals.

scholarly journals Free school meals as an opportunity to target social equality, healthy eating, and school functioning: experiences from students and teachers in Norway

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kristine E. Illøkken ◽  
Berit Johannessen ◽  
Mary E. Barker ◽  
Polly Hardy-Johnson ◽  
Nina Cecilie Øverby ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Healthy Eating ◽  
School Functioning ◽  
School Meals ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Social Equality ◽  
School Meal ◽  
Free School Meal ◽  
Free School ◽  
The Social ◽  
National Implementation

Background: There are no national arrangements for free school meals provision in Norway despite this being an important opportunity to improve children’s and adolescents’ nutritional status and ultimately their physical and cognitive development. During a one academic year (2014–2015), a group of Norwegian sixth graders were served a free healthy school meal in a project called ‘The School Meal Project’. Objective: To explore students’ and teachers’ experiences of receiving free school meals after the free school meal in 2015 and 5 years later. Design: In-depth, semi-structured interviews with separate groups in 2015 and in 2020 were conducted face to face or via telephone or digital platforms. The findings are based on 13 students (aged 12–16) and 5 teacher interviews. Findings: Thematic analysis identified four main themes that describe the perceived benefits of receiving free school meals: 1) the meal as a social event where students made new friends and learned new skills; 2) as an aid to forming healthy eating habits; and as an opportunity to 3) improve school functioning and 4) increase social equality among students. Discussion: Our analysis suggests that the free school meal may influence healthy behaviors not only at the individual level but also at the social-, physical-, and macro-levels. Methodological limitations, including self-selection bias, should be considered when interpreting our findings. Conclusion: This study provides unique insights into the social benefits for students of receiving free school meals. Our findings illustrate the potential of free school meals: eating healthy foods, sharing a meal together, and interaction between students and teachers at mealtime, to promote health, learning, and equality. In order to maximize these benefits through national implementation of free school meals, more understanding is needed of possible facilitators and barriers related to the provision and uptake of free school meals.

scholarly journals Associations among Food Security, School Meal Participation, and Students’ Diet Quality in the First School Nutrition and Meal Cost Study

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 307
Author(s):  
Sarah Forrestal ◽  
Elizabeth Potamites ◽  
Joanne Guthrie ◽  
Nora Paxton
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Diet Quality ◽  
Low Income ◽  
School Nutrition ◽  
Healthy Eating Index ◽  
Dietary Intakes ◽  
School Meals ◽  
Cost Study ◽  
School Meal ◽  
Chi Squared

The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 updated the nutrition standards in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs (NSLP and SBP) and expanded universal free meals’ availability in low-income schools. Past studies have shown that school meals are an important resource for children in food-insecure households. This analysis used data from the School Nutrition and Meal Cost Study to classify students as food insecure (FI), marginally secure (MS), or food secure (FS). Diet quality from school and nonschool foods that students consumed was assessed using Healthy Eating Index (HEI)-2010 scores. Chi-squared and two-tailed t-tests were conducted to compare school meal participation, students’ energy intakes, and diet quality across food security groups. FI and MS students were significantly more likely to participate in NSLP than FS students (79%, 71%, and 49%, respectively). SBP participation followed a similar pattern but was lower (38% FI, 33% MS, and 16% FS). Compared to FS students, FI and MS students more likely attended schools offering SBP, universal free meals, or afterschool snacks and suppers. School meals contributed significantly more energy to FI and MS students’ diets than to FS students (22%, 20%, and 13%, respectively). All groups’ dietary intakes from school foods were of higher quality than non-school foods. These findings highlight the role of school meals in meeting the energy and diet quality needs of FI and MS students.

scholarly journals Did School Meal Programs and SNAP Participation Improve Diet Quality of US Children from Low-Income Households: Evidence from NHANES 2013–2014?

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (10) ◽  
pp. 3574
Author(s):  
Tzuan A. Chen ◽  
Lorraine R. Reitzel ◽  
Ezemenari M. Obasi ◽  
Jayna M. Dave
Keyword(s):  
Diet Quality ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
Healthy Eating Index ◽  
School Meals ◽  
Assistance Program ◽  
School Meal ◽  
Nutrition Assistance ◽  
Low Income Households

Nutrition assistance programs such as school meals and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) are designed to provide a safety net for the dietary intake of children from low-income families. However, compared with eligible non-participants, the relationship of diet quality with school meals only and school meals + SNAP is not well understood. The objectives of the study include: (1) To explore whether and to what extent nutrition assistance program participation (school meals only and school meals + SNAP) is related to diet quality; and (2) to examine the differences of diet quality between participating in school meals only, school meals + SNAP, or non-participation among American children. Children aged 5 to 18 years old from income eligible households who participated in the 2013–2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were included in this cross-sectional study (n = 1425). Diet quality was measured using the Healthy Eating Index (HEI)–2015 and its 13 subcomponents. A Rao-Scott Chi-square test, propensity scores approach, and Analysis of Covariance were performed. Covariates included age, sex, race/ethnicity, weight status, and family monthly poverty index. SAS survey procedures were used to incorporate the appropriate sample design weights. Participation in school meals + SNAP was not associated with higher diet quality compared to eligible non-participants or school meals-only participants. Participation in school meals + SNAP improved the intake of total dairy, but not added sugars or total vegetables compared to school meals only. Overall, school meal + SNAP participation did not significantly improve the overall diet quality of children in low-income households relative to comparable non-participants.

Learning Style Preferences of Undergraduate Nursing Students: A Systematic Review

2019 ◽  
Vol 21 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Tonderai Washington Shumba ◽  
Scholastika Ndatinda Iipinge
Keyword(s):  
Systematic Review ◽  
Academic Performance ◽  
Academic Success ◽  
Nursing Students ◽  
Learning Styles ◽  
Learning Style ◽  
Undergraduate Nursing Students ◽  
Learning Style Preferences ◽  
Undergraduate Nursing ◽  
Style Preferences

This study sought to synthesise evidence from published literature on the various learning style preferences of undergraduate nursing students and to determine the extent they can play in promoting academic success in nursing education of Namibia. A comprehensive literature search was conducted on electronic databases as a part of the systematic review. Although, kinaesthetic, visual and auditory learning styles were found to be the most dominant learning style preferences, most studies (nine) indicated that undergraduate nursing students have varied learning styles. Studies investigating associations of certain demographic variables with the learning preferences indicated no significant association. On the other hand, three studies investigating association between learning styles and academic performance found a significant association. Three studies concluded that indeed learning styles change over time and with academic levels. The more nurse educators in Namibia are aware of their learning styles and those of their students, the greater the potential for increased academic performance.

Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document