When the lunch bell rings at Mount Vernon High School, students eagerly make their way to the cafeteria for a chance to talk with friends and escape solving that next math problem.
But few students would say that they exit their classrooms so quickly because they are excited about what's on the lunch menu. In fact, it's a challenge to find someone who has something positive to say about the food here, and we often find ourselves wondering why the school continually serves what we consider to be bad food. Though we might not appreciate it now, Fairfax County actually has very good reasoning behind every dietary choice it makes for the students.
Lunch for high school students is a very important meal. We all are really hungry when the lunch period arrives, and many students depend on the food to get them through the rest of the day as well as sports practices and other after-school activities. Doctors recommend that an average teen take in between 600 and 700 calories at lunch, which is a pretty significant amount of food. It is also advised that students eat a meal that includes protein, fruits and vegetables, and calcium. Believe it or not, school lunches meet these guidelines easily. All main entrees on the school lunch menu are between 200 and 400 calories, and come with a choice of 2 fruits and vegetables, a bread, and milk. Add up the calorie content and nutritional value that you get from a school meal, and you'll find that not only do school lunches have the right amount of calories, but you also get one-third of the daily dietary allowances that you need.
Some students have escaped the dreaded school lunch by bringing their own lunch to school. Though sometimes it is easy to envy those who bring food that is much more appetizing than what is available through the school day, there are a couple of things to consider. A school lunch costs $2.50, while the average packed lunch costs about $3.74. Though that doesn't seem like a big difference now, that's about a dollar everyday, 5 times a week for an entire day, which can add up quickly. Also, the Government Accounting Office, which is in charge of public funds including money going to school lunches, stated that, "School meals are healthy and children who eat school meals consume more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and dairy items than children who do not eat school meals." Fairfax County has also taken measures in the past couple years to put more whole grains in the rolls, pretzels, and pizza crust.
Without knowing all this background about school food, it would be easy to believe that our meals our thoughtlessly prepared, but this simply isn't the case. Every item on the menu is planned by registered dietitians and teens health needs are carefully considered. Though it will be an adjustment to change our views on cafeteria food, Fairfax County is making the effort to provide us with healthy meals, which is something to think about in the lunch line today.
