Longer lunch breaks lead to healthier food intake in elementary kids, Harvard study reveals

A Harvard study has revealed that elementary kids eat healthier when they are given longer lunch periods.

Researchers from Harvard Chan School found that elementary children from low-income school districts don't have enough time to eat a balanced lunch. The findings detailed in the Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics revealed that 20-minute lunch periods discourages kids from eating more.

"We were surprised by some of the results," said Eric Rimm, co-author from the Harvard Chan School, via Eureka Alert. "I expected that with less time children may quickly eat their entrée and drink their milk but throw away all of their fruits and vegetables. Not so - we found they got a start on everything, but couldn't come close to finishing with less time to eat."

For their study, the researchers gathered data from more than a thousand elementary and middle school children from low-income schools in Massachusetts. Their analysis included looking through the students' food selection, what they ate and what they threw away during their 20- to 30-minute lunch breaks.

According to the report by Medical Daily, the researchers found that students who had less than 20 minutes lunch period only ate over 87 percent of their entire lunch of veggies, fruit, milk and entrees. When compared to those who had more than 25 minutes of lunch period, there was more food wastage and less nutrition for the children. Additionally, the serving lines also cut down the lunch period into half so there is actually lesser time for children to eat anything.

"Many children, especially those from low-income families, rely on school meals for up to half their daily energy intake," said lead author Juliana Cohen from Harvard Chan School, in a press release. "It is essential that we give students a sufficient amount of time to eat their lunches."

In the article published by Harvard, it has been revealed that more than 30 million children in 100,000 schools in the US rely on the National School Lunch Program. However, Rimm notes that little research has been allotted to this.

According to the report by Medical Daily, there are no regulations for school lunch periods despite the program being financially assisted by the Federal government and ensured it is nutritionally balanced for kids. According to Nature World Report, children who have proper breakfast and lunch have more energy to be focused through school.