School has started (or will be soon) so it's time to think about what your child will be eating during the day. Given that school-aged children spend at least 6 hours at school every school day and obtain up to 47% of their calories from meals and snacks consumed at school, parental involvement is important. So will it be school lunch or a sack lunch?

Despite what you've heard in the media (e.g., Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution) public school meals provided by the National School Lunch Program (NSLP) can be very healthy - especially if your child's school district is progressive and has received recognition awards from programs like the HealthierUS School Challenge and Alliance for a Healthier Generation Healthy Schools Program. All NSLP meals have to meet certain nutrient standards set by the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) and state standards like those set by the Texas Department of Agriculture, but research does show that on average school meals are too high in fat and sodium and too low in fiber. Standards are getting more stringent, however, and while far from finalized, the Senate did pass last week the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 which would change many of the foods served in schools if passed by the House. The bottom line is that you should look at your child's school menus and discuss healthy choices with your children. Last week I received a sneak peak at the 2010-2011 Dallas Independent School District school menus and was quite impressed. Brown rice is replacing white rice and whole grain breads are offered daily. Fresh ingredients are replacing many processed products and hamburgers and fries are limited to once every two weeks in elementary and middle schools. On the menu I saw Black Bean Burgers, Veggie Salads with Whole Grain Flatbread, and Fruit and Yogurt Parfaits. What an improvement over previous years' menus!

If, on the other hand, your child prefers to brown-bag-it, review last year's blog, Better Brown Bag Ideas for Kids Headed Back to School. Think "color" and "food groups". Does your child's lunch contain reds, oranges, greens, yellows, blues/purples, and dark browns? And no, the flashy packaging doesn't count! Is there something from each of the food groups: grains, vegetables, fruits, milk, meat and beans? For more ideas of foods from each food group visit MyPyramid.gov.

Share your brown-bag tips or stories how you have helped make the foods served by your school healthier. 

Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. School Lunch Report Card: A Report by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. August 2007. http://www.healthyschoollunches.org/reports/report 2007_card.cfm. Accessed April 30, 2008. 

Crepinsek, M.K. (2009). Meals offered and served in us public schools: do they meet nutrient standards. Journal of the American Dietetic Association, 109, S31-S43.