1. Post-Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act Adherence to Select School Nutrition Standards by Region and Poverty Level: The Healthy Communities Study.
- Author
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Au LE, Ritchie LD, Gurzo K, Nhan LA, Woodward-Lopez G, Kao J, Guenther PM, Tsai M, and Gosliner W
- Subjects
- Cross-Sectional Studies, Food Services standards, Humans, Poverty, Residence Characteristics statistics & numerical data, Schools statistics & numerical data, United States, Diet, Healthy methods, Food Services statistics & numerical data, Guideline Adherence statistics & numerical data, Nutrition Policy
- Abstract
Objective: This study determined the extent to which schools adhered to select nutrition and wellness provisions of the 2010 Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act and examined differences by US region and school poverty level., Design: Comparison of cross-sectional observational data from the Healthy Communities Study (2013-2015) by region and school poverty level., Participants: A total of 401 US elementary and middle schools., Main Outcome Measures: Adherence with federal nutrition standards for meals and competitive foods; extent of implementation of select aspects of school wellness policies., Analysis: Descriptive statistics and multivariate regression were used. Differences were examined by school poverty level and region, adjusting for other school- and community-level covariates., Results: Most schools reported meeting reimbursable school meal nutrition standards (74%); more schools in the West met nutrition standards (82%) than in the Midwest (64%). Most grains offered at lunch were whole grain-rich (82%), and most competitive foods complied with standards (78%) before they were required. Most schools had a wellness coordinator (80%). Lowest levels of adherence were reported for guidelines for classroom or school event foods. No differences were observed by school poverty level., Conclusions and Implications: Findings suggest that Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act provisions were feasible across a wide variety of schools, and schools successfully implemented reimbursable school meal nutrition standards regardless of school poverty level., (Copyright © 2019 Society for Nutrition Education and Behavior. Published by Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)
- Published
- 2020
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