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[cid:image006.jpg@01D0E0E6.7F1E3390]<http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6433a3.htm?s_cid=mm6433a3_w>Dear Colleagues:





On behalf of CDC’s Division of Population Health, I’m pleased to inform you about an article in this week’s CDC Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report<http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/mm6433a3.htm?s_cid=mm6433a3_w> on School Health Policies and Practices Study (SHPPS) findings that show improvement in school meal practices. Findings show the number of schools using practices to offer a variety of fruits and vegetables and reduce sodium in meals has increased significantly between the years 2000 to 2014. These changes are important because most U.S. youth don’t meet national recommendations for a healthy diet, consuming insufficient fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. Students consume as much as half of their daily calories at school, often through the federal school meal programs.





CDC researchers analyzed school-level data from the School Health Policies and Practices Study (SHPPS) for 2000, 2006, and 2014 to see how well schools are implementing practices related to the nutrition standards for school meals published by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2012. The standards require serving more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains and gradually reducing sodium over 10 years.  Previous studies have shown that students who eat school meals consume more milk, fruits, and vegetables during school meal times and have better intake of some key nutrients (e.g., calcium, fiber) than those who do not participate in the meal programs.





Key results in the MMWR report include:



In 2014:



·         Almost all schools offered whole grains each day for breakfast (97.2 percent) and lunch (94.4 percent).



·         Most schools offered two or more vegetables (79.4 percent) and two or more fruits (78.0 percent) each day for lunch.



·         Approximately one-third (30.5 percent) of schools offered self-serve salad bars.



·         More than half of schools that prepared their meals at the school used fresh or frozen vegetables instead of canned (54.1 percent), used low sodium canned vegetables instead of regular canned vegetables (51.8 percent), used other seasonings instead of salt (65.1 percent) and reduced the amount of sodium called for in recipes or used low-sodium recipes (68.0 percent).

From 2000 through 2014, the percentage of schools offering two or more fruits every day for lunch, offering two or more vegetables every day for lunch, using low-sodium canned vegetables instead of regular canned vegetables, using other seasonings instead of salt, and reducing the amount of salt called for in recipes or using low-sodium recipes increased significantly.





Although schools are moving in the right direction, opportunities still exist to improve school nutrition services practices related to fruit and vegetable availability and sodium reduction. Schools can assess their nutrition policies and practices by completing CDC’s School Health Index<http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/shi/index.htm> and implement strategies found in CDC’s School Health Guidelines to Promote Healthy Eating and Physical Activity<http://www.cdc.gov/healthyyouth/npao/strategies.htm>.  Administrators can ensure schools have appropriate equipment to prepare and serve fruits and vegetables (e.g., food processors, knife sets with cutting boards, and refrigerators). Schools can participate in partnerships like Let’s Move Salad Bars to Schools<http://www.saladbars2schools.org/>, USDA’s Farm to School<http://www.fns.usda.gov/farmtoschool/farm-school> program, and the Smarter Lunchrooms<http://smarterlunchrooms.org/> initiative to offer healthy and appealing meals to students. Districts and schools can work with CDC-funded staff in State Health Departments (State Public Health Actions<http://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/about/state-public-health-actions.htm>) to provide ongoing training for school nutrition professionals, and resource materials to school administrators, teachers, and parents to further improve school nutrition practices and support the meal programs. U.S. schools have significantly improved school nutrition practices and should continue striving to provide a quality nutrition environment for students.



Thank you for your support.



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        [Wayne H. Giles, MD, MS   Director, Division of Population Health   National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention   and Health Promotion   Centers for Disease Control and Prevention]