Medical X-Press – Sophie Freeman
“Only a tiny proportion of children’s packed lunches are meeting nutritional standards, despite high-profile awareness campaigns, a University of Leeds study has found. Researchers in the School of Food Science and Nutrition found that just 1.6 per cent of primary children’s packed lunches met the nutritional standards set for their classmates eating in the school canteen. Less than a fifth (17 per cent) contained any vegetables or salad, while more than half (52 per cent) contained too many sweet snacks. Lead researcher Dr Charlotte Evans, a nutritional epidemiologist in the University’s School of Food and Nutrition, said: “I hope the results of the study are an eye-opener, highlighting that more stringent policies need to be introduced if we want to see real change in the nutritional value of children’s packed lunches.”(more)