Nutrition Education

Why it's an issue

Nutrition education in schools is important

U.S. students receive less than 8 hours of required nutrition education each school year. That's far below the 40–50 hours that are needed to change behavior. And the percentage of schools providing required instruction on nutrition and dietary behaviors decreased between 2000 and 2014: from 84.6% to 74.1%.

Diet plays an important role in preventing chronic diseases and supporting good health. Therefore, schools ideally should:

• Offer more hours of nutrition education instruction.
• Engage teachers and parents in nutrition education.

Research shows that nutrition education can teach students to see how a healthy diet affects emotional well-being. In turn, emotions can influence eating habits. Accordingly, school staff could add nutrition education into the existing schedule.

How it works

Nutrition education can be added throughout the school day, and in various school locations. Yet schools can be flexible in using strategies that work, given the school's daily schedule and resources.

In the classroom

Nutrition education can occur in the classroom, either through a specific health education class or added to other subjects including:

• Counting with pictures of fruits and vegetables.
• Learning fractions by measuring ingredients for a recipe.
• Examining how plants grow.
• Learning about cultural food traditions.

Nutrition education should align with the national health education standards and incorporate the characteristics of an effective health education curriculum.

Farm to school

Farm-to-school programs vary in each school or district, but they often include one or more of the following:

• Buying and serving locally or regionally produced foods in the school meal programs.
• Teaching students about agriculture, food, health, and nutrition.
• Offering hands-on learning through gardening, cooking lessons, or farm field trips.

Students in farm-to-school activities have more knowledge about nutrition and agriculture, are more willing to try new foods, and eat more fruits and vegetables.

School gardens

School garden programs vary in size and purpose, taking the form of windowsill gardens, raised beds, greenhouses, or planted fields. School garden programs increase students':

• Nutrition knowledge.
• Willingness to try fruit and vegetables.
• Positive attitudes about fruits and vegetables.

Students can prepare the soil for the garden, plant seeds, harvest the fruits and vegetables, and taste the food. Produce from school gardens can be used in school meals or taste tests.

In addition, teachers can teach lessons in math, science, history, and language arts using the school garden.

In the cafeteria

Cafeterias can feature nutrition promotion posters or student artwork promoting healthy eating. Cafeterias are also learning labs where students:

• Are exposed to new foods through the school meal program.
• See what balanced meals look like.
• Can be encouraged to try new foods from school nutrition staff or through taste tests.

Other opportunities

Schools can add messages about nutrition and healthy eating into the following:

• Morning announcements.
• School assemblies.
• Materials sent home to parents and guardians.
• Staff meetings.
• Parent-teacher group meetings.

These activities can reinforce messaging about good nutrition. They can also help ensure that students see and hear consistent information about healthy eating at school and at home.

Shared use agreements can extend healthy eating learning opportunities. As an example, an after-school activity could gain access to school gardens as learning labs.

Resources

CDC | Parents for Healthy Schools

Nutrition: Gardening Interventions | The Community Guide

Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020–2025

Learning Through the Garden

National Farm-to-School Network

National Farm to School Network | Resource Database

Standards for Health Education

Team Nutrition Resources for Schools

USDA | Patrick Leahy Farm to School Program

USDA | Team Nutrition