Healthy School Lunches Lead to Higher Test Scores

Medical research has long shown that good nutrition leads to better cognitive development in children, but until now had not established direct links between school lunches and academic test scores. A new study of California public schools over five years has found that more nutritious lunches in fact lead to higher scores on end-of-year tests. For students that qualify for free or reduced lunches, scores are 40 percent higher. The findings cast doubt on the Trump administration's recent proposal to roll back the healthy lunch requirements established in the 2010 Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act. 

The study did not find that healthier lunches lead to fewer overweight students. Researchers used the Healthy Eating Index (HEI), a standard the Department of Agriculture also uses, to determine the nutritional value of lunches, and found that the average school lunch prepared by private companies, with a score of 59.9 out of 100, is less healthy than the average American meal, which scores 63.8. 

Brookings Institution (5/3/17)

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