School Menu Review Programme (PReME): evaluation of compliance with dietary recommendations during the period 2006–2020 in Catalonia (original) (raw)
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Background: Recommendations for the development of school menus can promote healthier, more sustainable food systems. In Spain, these recommendations depend on regional governments (Autonomous Communities—CCAAs) that develop their own guides. The objective of this study was to explore the nutritional and sustainability recommendations for the development of menus by school food services in Spain. Methods: Guides were reviewed that were available on the official web pages of the councils of health and education. Twenty-four variables were studied and organized into three categories: characteristics, nutritional recommendations and sustainability. The number of recommendations included in each guide was counted. The weekly frequency of the suggested food provision for each food group was calculated, as was the average, median, standard deviation, confidence interval and interquartile index. Results: Overall, 13 guides were reviewed from different CCAAs. All of them included at least t...
The British journal of nutrition, 2012
To improve the dietary offering in schools, the French authorities published recommendations on nutrition in 1999, which were then revised in 2007. The aim of the present study was to assess the nutritional offering in secondary school meals and the extent to which the recommendations promote balanced nutritional offerings. In 2005, a national survey was conducted on a representative sample of secondary schools, either administrated by the Ministry of Education (ES) or the Ministry of Agriculture (AS). Information on school-catering organisation and twenty consecutive meals was collected from each of the 707 secondary schools surveyed. Nutritional composition was estimated according to the French food composition database. Univariate and multivariate analyses were used to investigate the impact of food-group frequency guidelines (FFG) on nutritional offering. It was found that 15 and 26 % of ES and AS schools, respectively, had high compliance with the FFG, at lunch. Macronutrient c...
Public Health Nutrition, 2007
Objective: To analyse the degree of compliance with the nutrition objectives and population-based food guides and to indicate possible recommendations for their development within the framework of a Nutrition and Health Policy in Catalonia. Design: Using data derived from the latest Catalan Nutrition Survey (ENCAT 2002-03) conducted by the Department of Health, compliance was analysed with respect to the recommendations derived as a result of a previously conducted Survey. In addition, compliance to the recommendations elaborated by the Spanish Society of Community Nutrition (SENC) was also evaluated. Setting: Catalonian region located in the Northeast of Spain. Subjects: Analysis is based on a total of 2160 individuals (996 males and 1164 females) aged 10-80 years interviewed in 2002-03. Results: The analysis of compliance with the recommendations established in 1995 showed: (a) recommendation to maintain and increase consumption of fruits and vegetables was not achieved; (b) continued use of olive oil as the dietary fat of choice was met; (c) incomplete compliance with maintaining the Mediterranean diet traditions, especially in the younger cohorts; (d) compliance with the recommendation to decrease consumption of red meat and sausages, but non-compliance with guidance to maintain or increase fish consumption and (e) compliance with partially substituting whole milk and dairy for low-fat products. Compliance with the SENC Healthy Eating Guide revealed that those food groups with the worst results were meat and sausages (excessive), pulses (below recommendations) and fruits and vegetables (below recommendations). Conclusions: Compliance with dietary guidelines is low in Catalonia, and reflects the need for an effective nutrition policy in the region defined by the Autonomous Government as the Plan for the Promotion of Physical Activity and Healthy Eating (PAAS).
The school setting: an opportunity for the implementation of dietary guidelines
Public Health Nutrition, 2001
Nutrition, physical activity and health related promotion programmes in schools have developed into a mature field of research over the past decades. A number of success factors have been identified and evidence-based interventions have been performed. However, the school setting as an arena for evidence-based health promotion programmes, is still not used to its full potential. Schools provide an excellent arena for reaching large segments of the population, such as young people, school staff, families and the surrounding community. There is a need for an overview regarding the current status of nutrition, physical activity, related health as well as support structures in the EU member states. Based upon such an analysis, a consensus report should be written, pointing out the major problems at hand. Self-assessment tools for national as well as for school level should be produced, in order to guide changes, but also to include an element of continuous assessment of change, for evaluation purposes.
European journal of public health, 2014
Sweden provides a free school lunch to every child in the compulsory (9-year) school system. It consists of a hot meal, a salad buffet, bread and a beverage. The Education Act states it must be free of charge (since 1997) and 'nutritious' (since 2011). No standards/limits are specified but voluntary guidelines for serving of the school meal exist. We describe how school meal quality has changed since 2011. A random sample of schools were contacted in spring 2011 and invited to use a novel web-based instrument to evaluate school meal quality. In spring 2013, the participating schools (N = 191) were encouraged to use it again and 97 did. The outcomes were measures of quality including food provision/choice, adherence to serving guidelines and, using validated food-based criteria, nutritional quality. No change was seen in the proportion offering alternative options daily, but a vegetarian option was significantly more widely available in 2013. Adherence to all but one of the s...
PLoS ONE, 2013
In 2005, the nutritional content of children's school lunches in England was widely criticised, leading to a major policy change in 2006. Food and nutrient-based standards were reintroduced requiring primary schools to comply by September 2008. We aimed to determine the effect of the policy on the nutritional content at lunchtime and in children's total diet. We undertook a natural experimental evaluation, analysing data from cross-sectional surveys in 12 primary schools in North East England, pre and post policy. Dietary data were collected on four consecutive days from children aged 4-7 years (n = 385 in 2003-4; n = 632 in 2008-9). We used linear mixed effect models to analyse the effects of gender, year, and lunch type on children's mean total daily intake. Both pre-and post-implementation, children who ate a school lunch consumed less sodium (mean change 2128 mg, 95% CI: 2183 to 273 mg) in their total diet than children eating home-packed lunches. Post-implementation, children eating school lunches consumed a lower % energy from fat (21.8%, 22.8 to 20.9) and saturated fat (21.0%; 21.6 to 20.5) than children eating packed lunches. Children eating school lunches post implementation consumed significantly more carbohydrate (16.4 g, 5.3 to 27.6), protein (3.6 g, 1.1 to 6.0), non-starch polysaccharides (1.5 g, 0.5 to 1.9), vitamin C (0.7 mg, 0.6 to 0.8), and folate (12.3 mg, 9.7 to 20.4) in their total diet than children eating packed lunches. Implementation of school food policy standards was associated with significant improvements in the nutritional content of school lunches; this was reflected in children's total diet. School food-and nutrient-based standards can play an important role in promoting dietary health and may contribute to tackling childhood obesity. Similar policy measures should be considered for other environments influencing children's diet.
School nutrition guidelines: overview of the implementation and evaluation
Public Health Nutrition, 2015
ObjectiveTo holistically evaluate the extent of implementation of dietary guidelines in schools and present various monitoring systems.DesignThe study comprises three methods: (i) a cross-sectional survey (process evaluation); (ii) an indicator-based evaluation (menu quality); and (iii) a 5 d weighed food record of school lunches (output evaluation).SettingSlovenian primary schools.SubjectsA total 234 food-service managers from 488 schools completed a self-administrated questionnaire for process evaluation; 177 out of 194 randomly selected schools provided menus for menu quality evaluation; and 120 school lunches from twenty-four schools were measured and nutritionally analysed for output evaluation.ResultsThe survey among food-service managers revealed high levels of implementation at almost all process evaluation areas of the guidelines. An even more successful implementation of these guidelines was found in relation to organization cultural issues as compared with technical issue...
Revista de Nutrição, 2020
ABSATRCT Objective This study aimed to investigate the main criteria used by nutritionists to plan school menus within the framework of the Brazilian National School Feeding Program. Methods Nutritionists from 21 municipalities in Southern Brazil were interviewed. Municipalities had between 20,000 and 70,000 inhabitants and were located in different mesoregions. Data were collected using an open-ended questionnaire and subjected to content analysis using NVivo® software. Results Sixteen criteria were identified, grouped into four categories: (1) food habits, culture, and acceptance; (2) nutritional characteristics; (3) food availability; and (4) management and execution. Brazilian National School Feeding Program regulations were recurrently cited within all identified categories, which demonstrates the influence of the program on nutritionists’ activities. Conclusion Brazilian National School Feeding Program regulatory guidelines for the development of school menus seem to influence...
BMC Public Health
Background: Mexico approved mandatory nutrient-based standards for foods sold in schools in 2011. The aim of this study was to analyse the association between compliance with nutrition standards for foods sold in schools and children's school snacks. Methods: Data came from three surveys representative of Mexican elementary schools in 13 states and their students (2012, 2013 and 2015); n = 645 children from N = 99 different schools. Information on foods sold in schools and snacks consumed by children was collected through direct observation. Compliance with the standards was defined as the proportion of foods sold in school which met nutrition criteria established by the standards. Snacks were classified as healthy if they contained at least one fruit or vegetable and had no sugar-sweetened beverages. Robust logistic regression models for cross-sectional and repeated surveys aggregated at the school-level were fitted to quantify the association between school compliance with standards and healthy snacks. Results: On average across waves 27% of foods sold complied with nutrition standards; 18% of children consumed a healthy snack. For snacks purchased in school, a 10% increase in school compliance with the standards was associated with a 32% increase in the odds of a healthy snack (OR = 1.32; 95%CI 1.09,1.61); no association was observed for snacks brought from home. The odds of a healthy snack increased over time in schools where compliance with the standards improved (OR = 3.89; 95%CI 1.47,10.31) but not in those where compliance remained constant or decreased. Conclusions: Only a small proportion of children are eating healthy snacks in school. School compliance with standards increases the likelihood of a healthy snack if it is bought at school. Our findings support better implementation of the standards and additional strategies to enhance the policy to achieve its aim of reducing childhood obesity.
British Journal of Nutrition, 2011
Following concerns about the nutritional content of school lunches and the increased prevalence of overweight and obesity in the UK, changes to the standards of school meals were made. From September 2008, all primary schools in England were required, by law, to be fully compliant with the new food-based standards (FBS) and nutrient-based standards (NBS) for school lunches. The aim of the present survey was to evaluate the introduction of the NBS for school lunches on the nutritional profile of food and drink items provided by schools and chosen by pupils at lunchtime. A nationally representative sample of 6696 pupils from 136 primary schools in England aged 3 -12 years and having school lunches was recruited. Data were collected on lunchtime food and drink provision at each school and on pupil food and drink choices at lunchtime. Caterers also provided planned menus, recipes and other cooking information. Compliance with both the FBS and NBS was then assessed. Results show that even when the FBS was met, many schools did not provide a school lunch that met the NBS as well. The average school lunch eaten was significantly lower in fat, saturated fat and Na in schools that met both the FBS and NBS for school lunches compared with schools that met only the FBS. Change in school lunch policy has contributed to improvements in pupils' choices and the nutritional profile of foods selected at lunchtime. * Corresponding author: Dr M. Nelson, fax þ 44 207 925 3894, email michael.nelson@sft.gsi.gov.uk Abbreviations: FBS, food-based standards; NBS, nutrient-based standards.