School dinners and markers of cardiovascular health and type 2 diabetes in 13-16 year olds.

Title
School dinners and markers of cardiovascular health and type 2 diabetes in 13-16 year olds: cross sectional study.

Source
British Medical Journal. 331, (7524): 1060-1061, 2005.

An investigation was conducted in 72 secondary schools in England and Wales in 1998-2000 to assess whether consumption or not of school dinners was associated with markers of cardiovascular health and type 2 diabetes in 13-16 yr olds.

A total of 1112 pupils (53% boys, 47% girls) were studied. Among pupils consuming school dinners, mean levels of leptin, systolic blood pressure, ratio of total cholesterol to high density liopoprotein cholesterol, glucose, insulin and folate were significantly lower, and anthropometric markers of adiposity were slightly but not significantly lower than among pupils not consuming school dinners. Although pupils who consumed school dinners were more likely to have unskilled or unemployed parents, the differences remained significant after adjustment for social class. Additional adjustment for pubertal status and physical activity level did not affect results. Differences in these markers between pupils consuming and not consuming school dinners were modest.

It is suggested that the lower mean folate levels in pupils consuming school dinners indicates that increasing the folate content of school dinners might be advantageous. It is concluded that the average health status of pupils consuming school dinners is no worse (and may be better) than that of pupils consuming food supplied from home, suggesting that efforts to improve diet and nutrition of children and adolescents will need to extend beyond school dinners.