Amount of Time to Eat Lunch Is Associated with Children’s Selection and Consumption of School Meal Entrée, Fruits, Vegetables, and Milk
Open accessAbstract
Background There are currently no national standards for school lunch period length and little is known about the association between the amount of time students have to eat and school food selection and consumption. Objective Our aim was to examine plate-waste measurements from students in the control arm of the Modifying Eating and Lifestyles at School study (2011 to 2012 school year) to determine the association between amount of time to eat and school meal selection and consumption. Design We used a prospective study design using up to six repeated measures among students during the school year. Participants/setting One thousand and one students in grades 3 to 8 attending six participating elementary and middle schools in an urban, low-income school district where lunch period lengths varied from 20 to 30 minutes were included. Main outcome measures School food selection and consumption were collected using plate-waste methodology. Statistical analyses performed Logistic regression and mixed-model analysis of variance was used to examine food selection and consumption. Results Compared with meal-component selection when students had at least 25 minutes to eat, students were significantly less likely to select a fruit (44% vs 57%; P<0.0001) when they had <20 minutes to eat. There were no significant differences in entrée, milk, or vegetable selections. Among those who selected a meal component, students with <20 minutes to eat consumed 13% less of their entrée (P<0.0001), 10% less of their milk (P<0.0001), and 12% less of their vegetable (P<0.0001) compared with students who had at least 25 minutes to eat. Conclusions During the school year, a substantial number of students had insufficient time to eat, which was associated with significantly decreased entrée, milk, and vegetable consumption compared with students who had more time to eat. School policies that encourage lunches with at least 25 minutes of seated time might reduce food waste and improve dietary intake.
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Cites
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Claims the paper makes
6 of 24 cited sources checked · 4 supported · 0 flagged · accuracy not yet measured
- Premisecitation
Previous analyses found no significant differences in food selection or consumption between students who actively consented and those who did not.
“Previous analyses indicate that there were no significant differences in food selection or consumption between students who actively consented and those who did not.5,17”
- Also stated in: § DISCUSSION · plain
“However, previous analyses comparing selection and consumption among students with active and passive consents in the MEALS study found no significant differences among these two groups.5,17”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim1 of 2 sources checked- cites [5] Cohen, 2014, Impact of the new US Department of Agriculture school meal standards on food selection, consumption, and waste, Am J Prev Med source
- cites [17] Cohen, 2015, Effects of choice architecture and chef-enhanced meals on the selection and consumption of healthier school foods: A randomized clinical trial, JAMA Pediatr source
- Also stated in: § DISCUSSION · plain
- Findingown data
Students with 20 to 24 minutes to eat were less likely to select fruit than students with at least 25 minutes.
“Similarly, selection of fruits were significantly lower when students had between 20 to 24 minutes to eat compared with when students had at least 25 minutes (46.9% vs 57.3%; p<0.0001).”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim - Findingown data
Selection of vegetables was not associated with the amount of time to eat.
“Selection of entrées, vegetables and milk were not associated with the amount of time to eat.”
- Also stated in: § Results · plain
“There were no significant differences in entrée, milk, or vegetable selection.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim - Also stated in: § Results · plain
- Findingown data
Among students who selected milk, those with fewer than 20 minutes to eat consumed less of their milk than when they had at least 25 minutes.
“Using the same comparison group, when students had fewer than 20 minutes, they consumed significantly less of their vegetables (34.8% vs 46.6%; p<0.0001) and milk (62.3% vs. 72.6%; p<0.0001).”
- Also stated in: § Results · plain
“Among those who selected a meal component, students with fewer than 20 minutes to eat consumed 13% less of their entrée (p<0.0001), 10% less of their milk (p<0.0001), and 12% less of their vegetable (p=0.0002) compared to when students had at least 25 minutes to eat.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim - Also stated in: § Results · plain
- Findingown data
Among students who selected a vegetable, those with 20 to 24 minutes to eat consumed less of their vegetable than when they had at least 25 minutes.
“Students with between 20 to 24 minutes to consume their meal also consumed significantly less of their entrée (70.3% vs. 77.2%; p<0.0001) and vegetable (42.9 % vs. 46.6; p= 0.04) compared with student with at least 25 minutes to eat.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim
- Findingown data
Among students who selected a vegetable, those with fewer than 20 minutes to eat consumed less of their vegetable than when they had at least 25 minutes.
“Using the same comparison group, when students had fewer than 20 minutes, they consumed significantly less of their vegetables (34.8% vs 46.6%; p<0.0001) and milk (62.3% vs. 72.6%; p<0.0001).”
- Also stated in: § Results · plain
“Among those who selected a meal component, students with fewer than 20 minutes to eat consumed 13% less of their entrée (p<0.0001), 10% less of their milk (p<0.0001), and 12% less of their vegetable (p=0.0002) compared to when students had at least 25 minutes to eat.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim - Also stated in: § Results · plain
- Findingown data
Selection of entrées was not associated with the amount of time to eat.
“Selection of entrées, vegetables and milk were not associated with the amount of time to eat.”
- Also stated in: § Results · plain
“There were no significant differences in entrée, milk, or vegetable selection.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim - Also stated in: § Results · plain
- Findingown data
The majority of students did not have at least 25 minutes to eat, even with a 30-minute lunch period.
“However, the majority of students did not have this amount of time to eat, even with a 30 minute lunch period.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim - Findingown data
Selection of milk was not associated with the amount of time to eat.
“Selection of entrées, vegetables and milk were not associated with the amount of time to eat.”
- Also stated in: § Results · plain
“There were no significant differences in entrée, milk, or vegetable selection.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim - Also stated in: § Results · plain
- Findingown data
Among students who selected an entrée, those with 20 to 24 minutes to eat consumed less of their entrée than when they had at least 25 minutes.
“Students with between 20 to 24 minutes to consume their meal also consumed significantly less of their entrée (70.3% vs. 77.2%; p<0.0001) and vegetable (42.9 % vs. 46.6; p= 0.04) compared with student with at least 25 minutes to eat.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim - Findingown data
Among students who selected an entrée, those with fewer than 20 minutes to eat consumed less of their entrée than when they had at least 25 minutes.
“Students who had fewer than 20 minutes to eat consumed on average 12.8% less of their entrées compared with when students had at least 25 minutes (64.4%vs 77.2%; p<0.0001).”
- Also stated in: § Results · plain
“Among those who selected a meal component, students with fewer than 20 minutes to eat consumed 13% less of their entrée (p<0.0001), 10% less of their milk (p<0.0001), and 12% less of their vegetable (p=0.0002) compared to when students had at least 25 minutes to eat.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim - Also stated in: § Results · plain
- Findingown data
The amount of seated time to eat varied significantly across schools, ranging from 10 to 33 minutes, with a mean of 23.9 minutes.
“However, students were able to arrive early or late to lunch, resulting in significant differences across the schools in the amount of seated time to eat (excluding time spent traveling to the cafeteria or waiting in the lunch line) ranging from 10 to 33 minutes (mean 23.9 minutes; p<0.0001).”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim - Findingown data
A 30-minute lunch period would enable almost all students to have at least 20 minutes to eat, specifically 91%.
“Our study also found that a 30 minute lunch period would enable almost all students to have at least 20 minutes to eat their lunch (91%), although the results of this study also suggest that there were additional benefits for at least 25 minutes of seated time.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim - Findingown data
Students with fewer than 20 minutes of seated time to eat were less likely to select a fruit than students with at least 25 minutes.
“Compared with meal component selection when students had at least 25 minutes to eat, students were significantly less likely to select a fruit (44% vs. 57%; p=0.0001) compared with when students had fewer than 20 minutes to eat.”
- Also stated in: § RESULTS · plain
“Overall, students were significantly less likely to select a fruit if they had less than 20 minutes to eat their meal compared with having at least 25 minutes (44.4% vs. 57.3%; p<0.0001; Table 2).”
- Also stated in: § DISCUSSION · plain
“When students had less than 20 minutes of seated time to eat, they were less likely to select a fruit.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim - Also stated in: § RESULTS · plain
- Interpretationown data
Students with less than 20 minutes likely did not have enough time to fully consume their meal.
“Another important finding was that students ate significantly less of their entrée, milk, and vegetable when they had less than 20 minutes to eat compared with when students had at least 25 minutes to eat, suggesting that they likely did not have enough time to fully consume their meal.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim- Rests on an assumption: The observed association between seated time to eat and food consumption reflects a causal effect of time, such that increasing seated time would improve consumption.
- Interpretationreasoning
Enabling students to have sufficient time to eat can help address high levels of food waste in school cafeterias.
“This research suggests that enabling students to have sufficient time to eat their meals can help address this important issue.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim- Rests on an assumption: The observed association between seated time to eat and food consumption reflects a causal effect of time, such that increasing seated time would improve consumption.
- Premiseown data
A 30-minute lunch period would enable most students to have sufficient seated time, taking into account travel and waiting.
“This study concluded that a 30 minute lunch period would enable most students to have a sufficient amount of seated time in cafeterias, taking into account travel time to the cafeteria and waiting in line for food.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked- cites [7] Conklin, 2002, How long does it take students to eat lunch? A summary of three studies, J Child Nutr Mgt
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- Premisecitation
Lunch period length may not reflect actual time to eat because students spend substantial time waiting in line.
“Moreover, lunch period length may not reflect the amount of time that students actually have to eat because students typically spend a substantial amount of time waiting in line to receive school-prepared lunches.10,11”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 2 sources checked
- Classified as probably not a substantial claim. 15
- May combine two claims. 14
Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).
FindingcitationOverall waste levels in this study were similar to those previously found in studies examining food waste in schools.
“The overall waste levels seen in this study were similar to those previously founds in studies examining food waste in schools.5,22”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim1 of 2 sources checkedMay combine two claims.
PremisecitationConsuming food too quickly is associated with adverse gastrointestinal hormone responses and decreased satiety, which may increase risk of overweight.
“Consuming food too quickly is associated with adverse gastrointestinal hormone responses to the meal and with decreased perceived satiety post-consumption, which may increase the risk of overweight.14-16”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim2 of 3 sources checked- cites [14] Ford, 2009, Treatment of childhood obesity by retraining eating behaviour: Randomised controlled trial, BMJ source
The Introduction (page not specified in our copy) says faster eating can delay satiety and lead to overeating, and notes rapid eating in obese adolescents. The paper does not report adverse gastrointestinal hormone responses to a meal, so that part of the attributed claim is unsupported. (LLM, conf=0.88)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured - cites [15] Galhardo, 2011, Normalizing eating behavior reduces body weight and improves gastrointestinal hormonal secretion in obese adolescents, J Clin Endocrinol Metab source
- cites [16] Ioakimidis, 2009, A method for the control of eating rate: A potential intervention in eating disorders, Behav Res Methods source
In “Effect of Decreasing or Increasing Eating Rate in Linear Eaters” (page not available), the paper reports that faster-eating linear eaters consumed more food without an increase in postmeal satiety ratings. “Additional information” describes problems of weight regulation as a hypothesis still being tested. Our copy does not report adverse gastrointestinal hormone responses or establish that faster eating decreases postmeal satiety. (LLM, conf=0.85)
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
May combine two claims.
PremisecitationResearch suggests waste levels of school foods have not increased, but studies indicate high levels of food waste even after new guidelines.
“While research suggests that waste levels of school foods have not increased, studies do indicate that there were and still are high levels of food waste in school cafeterias even after implementation of the new school lunch guidelines.5,21”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim1 of 2 sources checkedProbably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.
PremisecitationIn a survey of school cafeteria managers, 44% reported students did not have enough time to eat, which they felt resulted in increased plate waste.
“In a survey of school cafeteria managers, 44% of respondents reported that students did not have enough time to eat, which they felt resulted in increased plate waste.12”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim1 of 1 sources checked- cites [12] Guthrie, 2002, Several strategies may lower plate waste in school feeding programs, Food Rev source
May combine two claims.
Findingown dataAmong schools with 30-minute lunch periods, on average 61% of students had less than 25 minutes of seated time to eat and 9% had under 20 minutes on any given day.
“Among schools with 30 minute lunch periods, on average 61% of the students had less than 25 minutes of seated time to eat their meals and 9% had under 20 minutes on any given day.”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claimMay combine two claims.
Findingown dataIn the school with a 20-minute lunch period, 100% of students had less than 25 minutes to eat, and on average 65% had under 20 minutes, with 17% having less than 15 minutes.
“In the school with the 20 minute lunch period, the majority of students were able to arrive slightly early, but 100% still had less than 25 minutes to eat, and on average 65% of the students had under 20 minutes (17% of students had less than 15 minutes) to consume their meal.”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claimProbably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).
InterpretationreasoningBecause the study was conducted before updated school meal standards required students to select a fruit or vegetable, the decreases in fruit selection with less time to eat may no longer be observed.
“This study was conducted prior to implementation of the updated school meal standards which requires students to select a fruit or vegetable. Therefore, it is possible that under the new guidelines, the decreases in fruit selection found in this study with less time to eat may no longer be observed.”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim- Rests on an assumption: The updated school meal standards require students to select a fruit or vegetable.
Classified as probably not a substantial claim.
Study design and conductnone givenLunch period times and lengths were reported by schools and verified by research assistants on data collection days.
“Lunch period times and lengths were reported by the schools and verified by research assistants (RAs) on data collection days.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claimClassified as probably not a substantial claim.
Study design and conductcitationConsumption was determined using established plate waste study methods.
“Consumption was determined using established plate waste study methods collected on randomly selected, non-consecutive days in the fall (n=2 days), winter (n=2 days), and spring (n=2 days) of the 2011-12 school year (n=6 days total).18,19”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 2 sources checkedMay combine two claims.
Interpretationown dataPolicies that enable students to have at least 25 minutes of seated time may lead to improvements in students' diets and decrease plate waste in school cafeterias.
“Findings from the current study suggests that policies that enable students to have at least 25 minutes of seated time may lead to improvements in students’ diets and decrease plate waste in school cafeterias.”
- Also stated in: § Conclusions · hedged
“School policies that encourage lunches with at least 25 minutes of seated time may reduce food waste and improve dietary intake.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim- Rests on an assumption: The observed association between seated time to eat and food consumption reflects a causal effect of time, such that increasing seated time would improve consumption.
- Also stated in: § Conclusions · hedged
Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).
Study design and conductnone givenStudy days were randomly selected for plate waste measurements without prior knowledge of what was being served.
“The study days were randomly selected for plate waste measurements without prior knowledge of what was being served.”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claimProbably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing).
Study design and conductnone givenStudents' food preferences were not assessed.
“An additional limitation is that students’ food preferences were not assessed.”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claimClassified as probably not a substantial claim.
Study design and conductown dataAnalyses adjusted for students' sex, grade, race/ethnicity, and time of the lunch period.
“All analyses adjusted for students’ sex, grade, race/ethnicity, and time of the lunch period (morning [start time of 11am to <12pm], midday [start time of 12:00pm to < 12:30pm], or afternoon [start time of 12:30pm to 1pm]).”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claimClassified as probably not a substantial claim.
Study design and conductown dataLogistic regression with multi-level modeling accounted for repeated measures of students nested within schools.
“Logistic regression with multi-level modeling was used to examine differences in school meal component selection, accounting for the repeated measures of students nested within schools (SAS PROC GLIMMIX; version 9.4, 2013; SAS Institute, Cary NC).”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claimMay combine two claims.
InterpretationreasoningAlmost all students in these schools received a school meal, so if some students who brought lunches from home shared school meals, it would have minimal impact on the study results.
“However, almost all students in these schools received a school meal, and therefore if this occurred it would have a minimal impact on the study results.”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim- Rests on an assumption: Almost all students in the participating schools received a school meal.
May combine two claims.
Interpretationown dataThe participating schools were all located in an urban, low-income primarily Hispanic school district and only elementary and middle schools were involved, limiting generalizability.
“The participating schools were all located in an urban, low-income primarily Hispanic school district and only elementary and middle schools were involved in this study.”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claimClassified as probably not a substantial claim.
Study design and conductown dataMixed-model ANOVA accounted for repeated measures of students and school as a random effect.
“To examine consumption among students who selected a meal component, mixed-model ANOVA was used, accounting for the repeated measures of students and school as a random effect (students nested within schools), using SAS PROC MIXED.”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claimProbably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.
Study design and conductnone givenThe study was strengthened by six days of plate waste measurements at each school and the large sample size.
“This study was also strengthened by the six days of plate waste measurements at each school and the large sample size.”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claimProbably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.
PremisecitationThe Bergman et al. study examined aggregate food consumption but did not differentiate between types of foods consumed.
“This study examined aggregate food consumption, but did not differentiate between the types of foods consumed by students (e.g. entrées, fruits, vegetables, or milk).”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked- cites [8] Bergman, 2004, The relationship between the length of the lunch period and plate waste in the elementary school lunch setting, J Child Nutr Mgt source
May combine two claims.
PremisecitationA similar study found longer lunch periods were associated with increased odds of consuming a fruit or vegetable, but amounts consumed were not assessed.
“A similar study found that longer lunch periods were associated with increased odds of consuming a fruit or vegetable, but the amounts consumed were not assessed.9”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 1 sources checked- cites [9] Gosliner, 2014, School-level factors associated with increased fruit and vegetable consumption among students in California middle and high schools, J Sch Health source
Classified as probably not a substantial claim.
PremisecitationA previous study by Bergman et al. found that students with 30-minute lunch periods consume more foods and nutrients than those with 20-minute lunch periods.
“A previous study conducted by Bergman et al. examined lunch period length and found that students with 30 minute lunch periods consume more foods and nutrients than those with 20 minute lunch periods.8”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked- cites [8] Bergman, 2004, The relationship between the length of the lunch period and plate waste in the elementary school lunch setting, J Child Nutr Mgt source
May combine two claims.
PremisecitationStudents frequently have lunch periods that are 20 minutes or less, which may lead to insufficient time to eat.
“Students frequently have lunch periods that are 20 minutes or less, which may lead to an insufficient amount of time to eat.6,7”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 2 sources checked- cites [6] Ross M, Crawford P. Evaluation of the healthy school meals project: Report of findings from ten California districts. Atkins center for weight and health. Prepared for the California endowment. http://cwh.berkeley.edu/sites/default/files/primary_pdfs/Healthy_School_Meals_Full_Report_FINAL2_small.pdf. Accessed March 4, 2015.
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- cites [7] Conklin, 2002, How long does it take students to eat lunch? A summary of three studies, J Child Nutr Mgt
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Classified as probably not a substantial claim.
PremisecitationStudents require at least 20 minutes seated at a lunch table to allow enough time to socialize and consume foods.
“Previous research documenting how students spend their time in cafeterias found that students require at least 20 minutes seated at a lunch table to allow for enough time to socialize and consume their foods.7”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked- cites [7] Conklin, 2002, How long does it take students to eat lunch? A summary of three studies, J Child Nutr Mgt
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
Probably not a substantial claim: may not pass S3 (load-bearing). May combine two claims.
PremisecitationThe Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 enhanced nutritional quality of school meals and set nutrition standards for competitive foods, resulting in improvements in student's school food selection and consumption.
“Recently, the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 enhanced the nutritional quality of school meals and set nutrition standards for competitive food sold in schools, which has resulted in improvements in student’s school food selection and consumption.4,5”
Quote in the paperNot a substantial claim0 of 2 sources checked- cites [4] 2012, Nutrition standards in the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs, Fed Reg
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
- cites [5] Cohen, 2014, Impact of the new US Department of Agriculture school meal standards on food selection, consumption, and waste, Am J Prev Med source
May combine two claims.
PremisecitationSurveys of students found that a high percentage felt rushed at lunch and reported insufficient time to eat.
“Similarly, surveys of students have found that a high percentage felt rushed at lunch and report insufficient time to eat their meal.13”
Quote in the paperSubstantial claim0 of 1 sources checked- cites [13] Perry Undem Research/Communication. California students’ voices on school meal time: Results from a survey of California middle and high school students. http://cfpa.net/ChildNutrition/ChildNutrition_CFPAPublications/Student%20Meal%20Time-%20Final%20Report-2013.pdf. Accessed March 4, 2015.
Couldn’t be matched to a paper in Crossref, so it can’t be checked.
The paper relies on this without support.
This study is the first to examine the association between the amount of time students have to eat and school food selection and consumption.
“To our knowledge, this study is the first to examine the association between the amount of time students have to eat on school food selection and consumption.”
The paper relies on this without support.
Current national standards do not address lunch period length.
“However, current national standards do not address lunch period length, which may result in many students having insufficient time to eat their meals.”
The paper relies on this without support.
The observed association between seated time to eat and food consumption reflects a causal effect of time, such that increasing seated time would improve consumption.
“Findings from the current study suggests that policies that enable students to have at least 25 minutes of seated time may lead to improvements in students’ diets and decrease plate waste in school cafeterias.”
The paper relies on this without support.
Almost all students in the participating schools received a school meal.
“However, almost all students in these schools received a school meal, and therefore if this occurred it would have a minimal impact on the study results.”
The paper relies on this without support.
The updated school meal standards require students to select a fruit or vegetable.
“This study was conducted prior to implementation of the updated school meal standards which requires students to select a fruit or vegetable.”
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
Each contradiction between two passages listed here was confirmed by an independent check.
Vegetable-consumption p-values disagree
MinorFor students with fewer than 20 minutes versus at least 25 minutes to eat, the abstract reports p=0.0002 for vegetable consumption, while the Results report p<0.0001 for the same comparison.
“12% less of their vegetable (p=0.0002) compared to when students had at least 25 minutes to eat.”
“when students had fewer than 20 minutes, they consumed significantly less of their vegetables (34.8% vs 46.6%; p<0.0001)”
Overall meal-eligibility figure falls below every school's reported rate
MinorThe paper gives an 88-94% eligibility range for the participating schools but later says approximately 85% of students in those schools were eligible. An overall rate cannot be below every school's rate.
“The majority of the students attending these schools were eligible for free or reduced-price meals (range 88 - 94%)”
“Approximately 85% of the students in the participating schools were eligible for free or reduced-priced meals.”
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Several Strategies May Lower Plate Waste in School Feeding Programs
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Food intake may be determined by plate waste in a retirement living center
NICHOLS, P. J., PORTER, C., HAMMOND, L., & ARJMANDI, B. H. (2002) · Journal of the American Dietetic Association · doi:10.1016/s0002-8223(02)90254-3 · Cited by 39 · cited 1× · see citing works
“Consumption was determined using established platewaste study methods collected on randomly selected, nonconsecutive days in the fall (n1⁄42 days), winter (n1⁄42 days), and spring (n1⁄42 days) of the 2011 to 2012 school year (n1⁄46 days total).(18,19) The study days were randomly selected for plate-waste measurements…”
Time spent by schoolchildren to eat lunch
BERGMAN, E. A., BUERGEL, N. S., JOSEPH, E., & SANCHEZ, A. (2000) · Journal of the American Dietetic Association · doi:10.1016/s0002-8223(00)00202-9 · Cited by 29 · cited 1× · see citing works
“students typically spend a considerable amount of time waiting in line to receive school-prepared lunches.(10,11) In a survey of school cafeteria managers, 44% of respondents reported that students did not have enough time to eat, which they believed resulted in increased plate waste.”
Students consuming sack lunches devote more time to eating than those consuming school lunches
BUERGEL, N. S., BERGMAN, E. A., KNUTSON, A. C., & LINDAAS, M. A. (2002) · Journal of the American Dietetic Association · doi:10.1016/s0002-8223(02)90282-8 · Cited by 19 · cited 1× · see citing works
“students typically spend a considerable amount of time waiting in line to receive school-prepared lunches.(10,11) In a survey of school cafeteria managers, 44% of respondents reported that students did not have enough time to eat, which they believed resulted in increased plate waste.”
Mitka, M. (2012) · JAMA · doi:10.1001/jama.2012.33468 · Cited by 6 · cited 1× · see citing works
“Foodservice staff, teachers, students, and parents have echoed concerns that implementation of the Healthy HungerFree Kids Act has led to increases in food waste.(20) Although research suggests that waste levels of school foods have not increased, studies do indicate that there were and still are high levels of food w…”
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Research works printed but not linked: 2
- Conklin, 2002, How long does it take students to eat lunch? A summary of three studies, J Child Nutr Mgt, 26
- Bergman, 2004, The relationship between the length of the lunch period and plate waste in the elementary school lunch setting, J Child Nutr Mgt, 28
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Hoffman, J. A., & Miller, E. A. (2020) · World Medical & Health Policy · doi:10.1002/wmh3.365 · Cited by 248 · see citing works
“, 30 minutes)would allow children to have more time to get their meal, sit down, and ultimately eat more food at lunch (Cohen et al., 2016).”
BackgroundOostindjer, M., Aschemann‐Witzel, J., Wang, Q., Skuland, S. E., Egelandsdal, B., Amdam, G. V., Schjøll, A., Pachucki, M. C., Rozin, P. N., Stein, J., et al. (2016) · Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition · doi:10.1080/10408398.2016.1197180 · Cited by 247 · see citing works
“ACCEPTED MANUSCRIPT 9 obesity rates (Capacci et al., 2012; Chriqui et al., 2014; Jaime and Lock, 2009; Harper and Wells, 2007).”
Lorenz, B. A.-S., Hartmann, M., & Langen, N. (2017) · Appetite · doi:10.1016/j.appet.2017.04.014 · Cited by 133 · see citing works
“persons and that the university cafeteria in general is very full during lunchtime. This changes the meaning of the question ‘whether a person had lunch on his/her own’ towards the question ‘whether a person had lunch sitting next to people he/she is familiar with or not’. Although Clendenen, Herman, & Polivy (1994) s…”
InfluentialConrad, Z., & Blackstone, N. T. (2020) · Nutrition Reviews · doi:10.1093/nutrit/nuaa035 · Cited by 98 · see citing works
Strategies to Improve School Meal Consumption: A Systematic Review
Cohen, J. F. W., Hecht, A. A., Hager, E. R., Turner, L., Burkholder, K., & Schwartz, M. B. (2021) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu13103520 · Cited by 90 · see citing works
“2016 [19] MA; 6 elementary and middle schools (1,001 students in grades 3-8) QE: Post-only (with comparison group) 2011-12 Lunch Duration: The times”
BackgroundSelf-citationA systematic review of school meal nudge interventions to improve youth food behaviors
Metcalfe, J. J., Ellison, B., Hamdi, N., Richardson, R., & Prescott, M. P. (2020) · International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity · doi:10.1186/s12966-020-00983-y · Cited by 85 · see citing works
“Furthermore, school meal research generally does not take the influence of other important system factors, like the time available to eat [21], menu [22], or day of the week [23], into account when evaluating behavioral nudges.”
BackgroundWhy the waste? A large-scale study on the causes of food waste at school canteens
Boschini, M., Falasconi, L., Cicatiello, C., & Franco, S. (2019) · Journal of Cleaner Production · doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2019.118994 · Cited by 93 · see citing works
Lorenz, B. A.-S., & Langen, N. (2017) · International Journal of Consumer Studies · doi:10.1111/ijcs.12392 · Cited by 71 · see citing works
Niaki, S. F., Moore, C. E., Chen, T. A., & Cullen, K. W. (2016) · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.1016/j.jand.2016.08.005 · Cited by 67 · see citing works
Zhao, C., Panizza, C. E., Fox, K. A. A., Boushey, C. J., Shanks, C. B., Ahmed, S., Chen, S., Serrano, E. L., Zee, J., Fialkowski, M. K., et al. (2019) · Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2019.05.590 · Cited by 57 · see citing works
“Note: Quotations were edited by the authors to correct grammar. also found that school policy influ-enced plate waste in the NSLP. 24 − 27 Cohen et al 20 reported that students who had < 20 minutes to eat lunch consumed 12% less of their entr (cid:1) ees, milk, and vegetables than did students who…”
BackgroundLorenz, B. A.-S., Langen, N., Göbel, C., Engelmann, T., Bienge, K., Speck, M. E.-M., & Teitscheid, P. (2019) · Appetite · doi:10.1016/j.appet.2019.03.026 · Cited by 55 · see citing works
From evaluation to action: Testing nudging strategies to prevent food waste in school canteens
Vidal-Monés, B., Díaz-Ruiz, R., & Roig, J. M. G. (2022) · Waste Management · doi:10.1016/j.wasman.2022.01.006 · Cited by 45 · see citing works
Piras, S., Righi, S., Banchelli, F., Giordano, C., & Setti, M. (2022) · Journal of Cleaner Production · doi:10.1016/j.jclepro.2022.135461 · Cited by 58 · see citing works
Hayes, D., Contento, I. R., & Weekly, C. (2018) · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.1016/j.jand.2018.03.005 · Cited by 42 · see citing works
“have enough time to enjoy all the food on their tray.(17) Experts suggest that policies encouraging lunches with at least 25 minutes of seated time may reduce food waste and improve dietary intake.”
BackgroundMa, L., Huang, L., Liu, Q., Xu, S., Wen, Z., Qin, S., Li, T., & Feng, Y. (2021) · Journal of Environmental Sciences · doi:10.1016/j.jes.2021.08.005 · Cited by 40 · see citing works
Turner, L. R., Guthrie, J. F., & Ralston, K. (2019) · Translational Behavioral Medicine · doi:10.1093/tbm/ibz090 · Cited by 39 · see citing works
Hayes, D., Contento, I. R., & Weekly, C. (2018) · Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2018.03.001 · Cited by 38 · see citing works
Food, nutrient, and energy waste among school students
Kowalewska, M., & Kołłajtis-Dołowy, A. (2018) · British Food Journal · doi:10.1108/bfj-11-2017-0611 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
Nutritional quality of lunch meals and plate waste in school lunch programme in Southern Thailand
Petchoo, J., Kaewchutima, N., & Tangsuphoom, N. (2022) · Journal of Nutritional Science · doi:10.1017/jns.2022.31 · Cited by 36 · see citing works
“It was shown that poor food quality or presentation, as well as inappropriate lunch time and too-short lunch break period could be the causes of plate waste in schools((32,33)).”
BackgroundFactors Associated with School Lunch Consumption: Reverse Recess and School “Brunch”
Chapman, L. E., Cohen, J., Canterberry, M., & Carton, T. W. (2017) · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.1016/j.jand.2017.04.016 · Cited by 31 · see citing works
Self-citationBurg, X., Metcalfe, J. J., Ellison, B., & Prescott, M. P. (2021) · JAMA Network Open · doi:10.1001/jamanetworkopen.2021.14148 · Cited by 32 · see citing works
Elnakib, S., Quick, V., Mendez, M., Downs, S., Wackowski, O. A., & Robson, M. G. (2021) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph18126389 · Cited by 27 · see citing works
Food plate waste: factors influencing insinuated intention in a university food service setting
Zhao, X., & Manning, L. (2019) · British Food Journal · doi:10.1108/bfj-07-2018-0481 · Cited by 26 · see citing works
“Time spent eating a 127 meal correlates with the amount of food waste as when students’ meal times are limited to less 128 than 20 minutes, they waste more food than they waste when they have five minutes more to 129 eat (Cohen et al., 2016).”
BackgroundExamining Nutrition and Food Waste Trade-offs Using an Obesity Prevention Context
Ellison, B., & Prescott, M. P. (2021) · Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2020.11.005 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Burton, M., Wood, J. M., Booth, A. O., Worsley, A., Larsson, C., & Margerison, C. (2022) · Appetite · doi:10.1016/j.appet.2021.105817 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Vardopoulos, I., Abeliotis, K., & Lasaridi, K. (2024) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su17010103 · Cited by 23 · see citing works
Merlo, C. L., Smarsh, B. L., & Xiao, X. (2023) · Journal of School Health · doi:10.1111/josh.13365 · Cited by 28 · see citing works
Parent Perceptions of School Meals Influence Student Participation in School Meal Programs
Zuercher, M. D., Cohen, J. F. W., Hecht, C., Hecht, K., Orta‐Aleman, D., Patel, A. I., Olarte, D. A., Chapman, L. E., Read, M., Schwartz, M. B., et al. (2024) · Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2024.01.003 · Cited by 21 · see citing works
Self-citationDocumented Success and Future Potential of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act
Cohen, J. F. W., & Schwartz, M. B. (2020) · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.1016/j.jand.2019.10.021 · Cited by 22 · see citing works
“Research suggests that when lunch periods are at least 30 minutes long there is significantly less food waste.(34) In addition, to ensure students are not spending their lunch period in line, schools can increase the number of”
BackgroundSelf-citationParent perceptions of school meals and how perceptions differ by race and ethnicity
Zuercher, M. D., Cohen, J. F. W., Ohri‐Vachaspati, P., Hecht, C., Hecht, K., Polacsek, M., Olarte, D. A., Read, M., Patel, A. I., Schwartz, M. B., et al. (2024) · Health Affairs Scholar · doi:10.1093/haschl/qxad092 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
“65 Consistent with other studies, we found that Black students had the highest rate of school lunch participation.”
BackgroundResultSelf-citationTurner, L. R., & Calvert, H. G. (2019) · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.1016/j.jand.2019.02.006 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
School Lunch Environmental Factors Impacting Fruit and Vegetable Consumption
Ang, I. Y. H., Wolf, R. L., Koch, P. A., Gray, H. L., Trent, R., Tipton, E., & Contento, I. R. (2019) · Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2018.08.012 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Plate Waste in School Catering in Rezekne, Latvia
Lonska, J., Zvaigzne, A., Kotāne, I., Silicka, I., Litavniece, L., Kodors, S., Dekšne, J., & Vonoga, A. (2022) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su14074046 · Cited by 20 · see citing works
Graziose, M. M., & Ang, I. Y. H. (2018) · Preventing Chronic Disease · doi:10.5888/pcd15.170373 · Cited by 19 · see citing works
“…et al, 2009 (28) 779 1 K–4 QE Digital photography Sliced fruit + NA NA Cullen et al, 2004 (43) 852 5 4–5 Cohort Food records Access to á la carte foods − − NA Cohen et al, 2016 (41) 1,001 8 3–8 Cohort Weighed plate waste Length of lunch period (20 min vs 20–24 min vs >25 min) + NA Cohen…”
Relationship Between Plate Waste and Food Preferences Among Primary School Students Aged 7–10 Years
Ilić, A., Bituh, M., Brečić, R., & Barić, I. C. (2022) · Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2022.04.003 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
State Laws Are Associated with School Lunch Duration and Promotion Practices
Turner, L., Leider, J., Piekarz-Porter, E., Schwartz, M. B., Merlo, C., Brener, N., & Chriqui, J. F. (2018) · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.1016/j.jand.2017.08.116 · Cited by 18 · see citing works
“The advocacy position in favor of providing students at least 20 minutes for lunch is supported by research showing that elementary and middle school students consume significantly less of their milk, entrées, and vegetables when provided fewer than 20 minutes for lunch.(16,17) Furthermore, elementary students consume…”
Behavioral Economic Approaches to Influencing Children’s Dietary Decision Making at School
Madden, G. J., Price, J., & Sosa, F. A. (2016) · Policy Insights from the Behavioral and Brain Sciences · doi:10.1177/2372732216683517 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
“In one study, when children had <20 min to eat lunch, they consumed 12% fewer vegetables than children who had at least 25 min to eat (Cohen et al., 2016); the schedule change had no effect on fruit consumption.”
BackgroundObjective measures of eating behaviour in a Swedish high school
Langlet, B. S., Anvret, A., Maramis, C., Moulos, I., Papapanagiotou, V., Diou, C., Lekka, I., Heimeier, R. A., Delopoulos, A. N., & Ioakimidis, I. (2017) · Behaviour and Information Technology · doi:10.1080/0144929x.2017.1322146 · Cited by 16 · see citing works
“A similar conclusion has been recently reported concerning food choices during school lunch, linking longer school lunch durations to healthier food choices (Cohen et al. 2016).”
ResultGross, S., Biehl, E., Marshall, B. D., Paige, D., & Mmari, K. (2019) · Journal of nutrition education and behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2018.07.002 · Cited by 17 · see citing works
Kodors, S., Zvaigzne, A., Litavniece, L., Lonska, J., Silicka, I., Kotāne, I., & Dekšne, J. (2022) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu14030587 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
“This duration is longer than our previously proposed lunch duration (15 min) based on smaller data amount [26], which is more consistent with the durations found by Cohen et al. [32] and Hamdi et al. [33], 20 min and 17/18 min, respectively.”
MethodMathias, K. C., Jacquier, E. F., & Eldridge, A. L. (2016) · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.1016/j.jand.2015.12.021 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Selection and consumption of lunches by National School Lunch Program participants
Peckham, J. G., Kropp, J. D., Mroz, T. A., Haley‐Zitlin, V., & Granberg, E. M. (2018) · Appetite · doi:10.1016/j.appet.2018.10.033 · Cited by 15 · see citing works
Taylor, J., Sutter, C., Ontai, L., Nishina, A., & Zidenberg‐Cherr, S. (2019) · Public Health Nutrition · doi:10.1017/s136898001900017x · Cited by 15 · see citing works
“as a proxy for socio-economic status) or other school characteristics beyond the scope of the present study but explored in other research, such as time available to eat((36,43,44)) or student–teacher relationships at lunchtime((45)).”
BackgroundNanayakkara, J., Margerison, C., Booth, A., Worsley, A. F., & Aydin, G. (2024) · Health Promotion Journal of Australia · doi:10.1002/hpja.842 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Food choices and service evaluation under time constraints: the school lunch environment
Sharma, A., Moon, J., Bailey-Davis, L. D., & Conklin, M. T. (2017) · International Journal of Contemporary Hospitality Management · doi:10.1108/ijchm-06-2015-0269 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
A Systems Examination of Food Packaging and Other Single-Use Item Waste in School Nutrition Programs
Palmer, S., Herritt, C., Cunningham-Sabo, L. D., Stylianou, K. S., & Prescott, M. P. (2021) · Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2021.01.009 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
Micronutrients and Nutrition Status of School-Aged Children in Indonesia
Ernawati, F., Efriwati, E., Nurjanah, N., Aji, G. K., Tjandrarini, D. H., Widodo, Y., Retiaty, F., Prihatini, M., Arifin, A. Y., Sundari, D., et al. (2023) · Journal of Nutrition and Metabolism · doi:10.1155/2023/4610038 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
“Having ≥20minutes of lunch is related to considerable consumption of grains, meats, milk, and vegetables [60].”
BackgroundMcLoughlin, G. M., Massey, W. V., Lane, H., Calvert, H. G., Turner, L. R., & Hager, E. R. (2020) · Health Education Journal · doi:10.1177/0017896920959359 · Cited by 14 · see citing works
“Finally, research shows a clear and undisputed need for adequate time for children to eat lunch (Cohen et al., 2015, 2016); thus, scheduling at least 20 minutes for sitting lunch time should be a priority for school administration as a means of enhancing nutritional behaviour in students.”
BackgroundLee, K. (2019) · Nutrition Research and Practice · doi:10.4162/nrp.2019.13.6.555 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
“[27] reported that students at schools with mealtime of less than 20 minutes ate entrées 13% less, milk 10% less, and vegetables 12% less than those with mealtime durations of more than 25 minutes.”
BackgroundSchupp, C., Getts, K., & Otten, J. J. (2018) · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · doi:10.5304/jafscd.2018.081.013 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Piochi, M., Buonocore, F., Spampani, F., & Torri, L. (2021) · Food Quality and Preference · doi:10.1016/j.foodqual.2021.104488 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
Understanding the Effect of Dining and Motivational Factors on Out-Of-Home Consumer Food Waste
Goodman-Smith, F., Mirosa, R., & Mirosa, M. (2020) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su12166507 · Cited by 13 · see citing works
Assess, Identify, Make it Happen (AIM) for Preschools: A Tool to Decrease Early Childhood Obesity
Farewell, C. V., Puma, J. E., Powers, J. N., & Belansky, E. S. (2017) · Health Promotion Practice · doi:10.1177/1524839917746677 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
Machado, S. S., Ritchie, L. D., Thompson, H. R., & Madsen, K. A. (2020) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph17165987 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
“[14] Gains in participation could also differentially improve fruit and vegetable consumption since NSLP lunches tend to have more fruits and vegetables than lunches brought from elsewhere, and students who participate in the NSLP consume more fruits and vegetables than those who do not [6,7].”
BackgroundHecht, A. A., Dunn, C. G., Kinsey, E. W., Read, M. A., Levi, R., Richardson, A. S., Hager, E. R., & Seligman, H. K. (2022) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu14071387 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
“Other evidencebased policies that improve meal consumption include ensuring students have enough seated time during lunch and offering recess before lunch [42,43].”
BackgroundMachado, S. S., Ritchie, L. D., Thompson, H. R., Reed, A. L., Ibarra-Castro, A., Neelon, M., & Madsen, K. A. (2019) · Contemporary Clinical Trials · doi:10.1016/j.cct.2019.01.013 · Cited by 10 · see citing works
Parent Perceptions and Opinions of Universal Free School Meals in Arizona
Martinelli, S., Melnick, E. M., Acciai, F., et al. (2024) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu16020213 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Rose, K., O’Malley, C., Brown, L., et al. (2021) · Nutrition Bulletin · doi:10.1111/nbu.12496 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
“There is limited evidence on the optimal time for school lunches, although, in a study measuring the relationship of time to food and dietary intake, young people were more likely to consume more vegetables when given at least 25 minutes of sitting time (Cohen et al., 2016).”
BackgroundOlarte, D. A., Stock, M., Sutton, M., Scott, M. D., Koch, P. A., Gustus, S. K., & Cohen, J. F. W. (2021) · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.1016/j.jand.2021.12.002 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Self-citationMingay, E., Hart, M., Yoong, S., Palazzi, K. L., D’Arcy, E., Pursey, K., & Hure, A. J. (2022) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu14173640 · Cited by 12 · see citing works
“This allows more time to sit and eat lunch, which has been shown to improve consumption of fruit, vegetables, entrees and milk, and therefore reduced waste [138,139].”
BackgroundYon, B. A., Amin, S. A., Taylor, J., & Johnson, R. K. (2016) · The Journal of Child Nutrition & Management · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Taylor, J., Sutter, C., Ontai, L., Nishina, A., & Zidenberg‐Cherr, S. (2017) · Appetite · doi:10.1016/j.appet.2017.08.037 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Graziose, M. M., Koch, P. A., Wolf, R. L., et al. (2019) · Appetite · doi:10.1016/j.appet.2019.01.026 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Orta‐Aleman, D., Zuercher, M. D., Hecht, C., Hecht, K., Poudel, I., Olarte, D. A., Patel, A. I., Polacsek, M., Ritchie, L. D., Cohen, J. F. W., et al. (2024) · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.1016/j.jand.2024.11.002 · Cited by 9 · see citing works
Self-citationDelaney, T. M., Jackson, J. K., Lecathelinais, C., et al. (2023) · Appetite · doi:10.1016/j.appet.2023.106528 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
“Additionally, students typically have only a small amount of time to eat during recess breaks (e.g. ~15 min) and are expected to pack or purchase foods that can be consumed within this period (Cohen et al., 2016).”
Madden, G. J., Price, J., & Wengreen, H. J. (2018) · Nebraska Symposium on Motivation/The Nebraska symposium on motivation · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-96920-6_4 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Cohen, J. F. W., Scott, M. D., Sutton, M., Cueva, K., Shonkoff, E. T., Goldman, R. E., Margolis, D. N., Potempa, A. E., Fink, K., Gustus, S. K., et al. (2021) · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.1016/j.jand.2021.03.010 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Self-citationCalvert, H. G., Ohri-Vachaspati, P., McQuilkin, M., Boedeker, P., & Turner, L. (2021) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph18168558 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
“This is suboptimal, as research has shown that, compared to having 25 min for lunch, students consume significantly less of their entrée, milk, and vegetable selections when they have fewer than 20 min to eat [19].”
MethodResultPetruzzelli, M., Iori, E., Ihle, R., & Vittuari, M. (2025) · Food Policy · doi:10.1016/j.foodpol.2024.102784 · Cited by 8 · see citing works
Chapman, L. E., Gosliner, W. A., Schwartz, M. B., et al. (2025) · Journal of School Health · doi:10.1111/josh.70004 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Self-citationBuscemi, J., Odoms‐Young, A. M., Yaroch, A. L., Hayman, L. L., Loiacono, B., Herman, A., & Fitzgibbon, M. (2018) · Translational Behavioral Medicine · doi:10.1093/tbm/iby040 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
The US National School Lunch Program: A Brief Overview
Izumi, B. T., Bersamin, A., Shanks, C. B., Grether-Sweeney, G., & Murimi, M. (2018) · The Japanese Journal of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.5264/eiyogakuzashi.76.s126 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
Dekšne, J., Lonska, J., Kodors, S., Litavniece, L., Zvaigzne, A., Silicka, I., & Kotāne, I. (2025) · Resources · doi:10.3390/resources14040059 · Cited by 11 · see citing works
“This variation in schedules might be the main reason for the students’ satisfaction, as their wishes and needs were very individual and depended on several factors [33,36].”
Who Cleans the Plate? Quantity and Type of Food Waste in 78 Primary Schools’ Canteens in Italy
Falasconi, L., Boschini, M., Giordano, C., Cicatiello, C., Alboni, F., Nassivera, F., Troiano, S., Marangon, F., Segrè, A., & Franco, S. (2025) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su17177836 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Social and Health Risk Factor Levels of Preschool Children Living Along the Texas‐Mexico Border
Treviño‐Peña, R., Wang, X., Wang, L., Romero, Z., Alanis, E., & Li, H. (2020) · Journal of School Health · doi:10.1111/josh.12979 · Cited by 7 · see citing works
School Lunch Consumption Among 3 Food Service Providers in New Orleans
Canterberry, M., Francois, S., van Hattum, T., Rudov, L., & Carton, T. W. (2018) · Journal of School Health · doi:10.1111/josh.12584 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
School Nutrition Stakeholders Find Utility in MealSim: An Agent-Based Model
Palmer, S., Ciubotariu, I., Ofori, R. O., et al. (2024) · Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior · doi:10.1016/j.jneb.2024.02.008 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
“Although there are studies demonstrating the link between seated lunchtime and consumption, 30,31 there is limited evidence on the factors influencing the amount of time that students spend in line, making it difficult to incorporate this into MealSim .”
BackgroundLove, D. C., Conrad, Z., Altema-Johnson, D., Ramsing, R., Bassarab, K., Thorne‐Lyman, A., Williams, D. L., Moore, E. R. H., Nussbaumer, E. M., & Anderson, P. T. (2025) · Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics · doi:10.1016/j.jand.2025.04.006 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
School‐Level Practices and Perceptions Associated With Salad Bars in Schools
Bruening, M. M., Adams, M. A., Ohri‐Vachaspati, P., & Hurley, J. C. (2018) · Journal of School Health · doi:10.1111/josh.12624 · Cited by 5 · see citing works
Knowledge-Based Recommendation System for Plate Waste Reduction in Latvian Schools
Kodors, S., Lonska, J., Zarembo, I., Zvaigzne, A., Apeināns, I., & Dekšne, J. (2024) · Sustainability · doi:10.3390/su16198446 · Cited by 6 · see citing works
Chapman, L. E., Gosliner, W. A., Olarte, D. A., Zuercher, M. D., Ritchie, L. D., Orta‐Aleman, D., Schwartz, M. B., Polacsek, M., Hecht, C., Hecht, K., et al. (2025) · Public Health Nutrition · doi:10.1017/s1368980024002349 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
Self-citationBeing well-fed in universal school lunches in Canada: avoiding a one-size-fits-all approach
Michnik, K., & Engler‐Stringer, R. (2025) · Health Promotion International · doi:10.1093/heapro/daaf012 · Cited by 4 · see citing works
“Like this study, other studies have shown school meal length to be an important factor in supporting student nutrition and wellbeing but is often too short, limited by busy school schedules and competing educational priorities (Cohen et al. 2016).”
Soloveva, M. V., Barnett, A. H., Mellecker, R. R., Sit, C. H. P., Lai, P., Zhang, C. J. P., Sallis, J. F., & Cerin, E. (2025) · Health & Place · doi:10.1016/j.healthplace.2025.103472 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
A randomized control trial of a Canadian-based school food program on the home food environment
Reagan, R., Woodruff, S. J., Seabrook, J. A., & Gilliland, J. (2022) · Health Promotion International · doi:10.1093/heapro/daac087 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Sandwich or long lunch? Lack of time and attendance of food outlets by French workers
Massey, C., Brémaud, D., & Saulais, L. (2021) · International Journal of Workplace Health Management · doi:10.1108/ijwhm-05-2020-0084 · Cited by 3 · see citing works
Ofori, R. O. (2025) · Global Smart Food Systems · doi:10.1108/gsfs-04-2025-0007 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Jaworski, M., & Chojnowska, E. (2026) · Nutrients · doi:10.3390/nu18060885 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Food waste recycling through co-design: Motivating youth behaviour change
Choi, Y. J., & Lee, C. H. (2025) · The Design Journal · doi:10.1080/14606925.2025.2573717 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“In addition to regulatory constraints, schools face operational challenges in managing food procurement, preparation, and service, often within compressed lunch periods as short as 20 min (Cohen et al. 2016; USDA 2016).”
Communication Strategies to Improve Healthy Food Consumption among Schoolchildren: Focus on Milk
Gennaro, L., Durazzo, A., Canani, S. B., Maccati, F., & Lupotto, E. (2017) · Beverages · doi:10.3390/beverages3030032 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“[60] studied the association between the amount of time students (aged 8.”
BackgroundLee, K.-E., & Choi, J. (2019) · Journal of the East Asian Society of Dietary Life · doi:10.17495/easdl.2019.10.29.5.408 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
Choi, J., & Lee, K. (2019) · 대한지역사회영양학회지 · doi:10.5720/kjcn.2019.24.5.422 · Cited by 2 · see citing works
“3% 학생들이 과일을 선택 하였고, 식사시간이 20분 미만인 학교 학생들은 식사시간이 25분 이상인 학교 학생에 비해 주요리는 13% 더 적게 섭취 하고, 우유는 10% 더 적게, 채소요리는 12% 더 적게 섭취 한 것으로 보고되었다[27].”
Grummon, A. H., Zeitlin, A. B., Lee, C. J. Y., et al. (2025) · American Journal of Preventive Medicine · doi:10.1016/j.amepre.2025.108232 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Dietary intake and eating behaviors by weight status among rural preschool children: NQ-P analysis
Park, J.-S., Lee, H., An, J., et al. (2026) · Journal of Nutrition and Health · doi:10.4163/jnh.2026.59.1.63 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Children’s insights into nutritional culture and habits in Abu Dhabi
Menon, P., Abdulazeez, M. U., Alnuaimi, M., Alnaaimi, M. H., Alzaabi, O. M., Almeqbaali, S. H., Aljneibi, D. M., Altamimi, S. F., Alsaedi, F. S., Alshehhi, H. A., et al. (2026) · Frontiers in Public Health · doi:10.3389/fpubh.2026.1746039 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
“A longer school lunch period has been suggested by previous studies that observed an increase in school lunch time resulted in increased consumption of fruits and vegetables by school-children (33, 50).”
Rettore, C., Lima, L. L., Puga‐Gonzalez, I., Pini, F., Szwed, P., Antosz, P., & Vittuari, M. (2026) · Cleaner and Responsible Consumption · doi:10.1016/j.clrc.2026.100435 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Partnerships to Improve Child Diet Quality and Reduce Food Waste in School Nutrition Program
Hamdi, N., Metcalfe, J. J., & Prescott, M. P. (2024) · Food and health · doi:10.1007/978-3-031-63673-8_7 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Schier, H. E., & Gunther, C. W. (2024) · Journal of Agriculture Food Systems and Community Development · doi:10.5304/jafscd.2024.141.023 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Comprehensive Farm-to-School: A Mixed-Methods Case Study of the Classroom, Cafeteria, and Community
Elkin, S. (2019) · ScholarWorks -A service of University of Vermont Libraries (University of Vermont) · Cited by 1 · see citing works
SIMULATION OF A SCHOOL CANTEEN TO UNDERSTAND MEAL DURATION IMPACT ON FOOD WASTE
Kodors, S., Zhukov, V., Zarembo, I., et al. (2021) · Environment Technology Resources Proceedings of the International Scientific and Practical Conference · doi:10.17770/etr2021vol2.6588 · Cited by 1 · see citing works
Preschool food waste and nutrition behavior
Milodragovich, A. M. (2017) · Montana State University ScholarWorks (Montana State University) · Cited by 1 · see citing works
- Authors
- Cohen, J. F. W., Jahn, J. L., Richardson, S., Cluggish, S. A., Parker, E., & Rimm, E. B.
- Affiliations
- Harvard University (US)
- Brigham and Women's Hospital (US)
- Corresponding author
- Cohen, Juliana F.W.
- Venue
- Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2016-01
- Volume
- 116
- Issue
- 1
- Pages
- 123-128
- ISSN
- 2212-2672 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC4698073
- OpenAlex
- W1451987894
- Cited by
- 116
- References
- 19
- Citations by year
- 2026: 10 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 12 · 2023: 4 · 2022: 9 · 2021: 14 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 16 · 2018: 14 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 6
- FWCI
- 9.62
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- bronze
- doi.org
- Locations
- Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Cancer Institute (R25CA098566)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Nursing › Nutrition and Dietetics › Nutrition, Health and Food Behavior
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Food Security and Health in Diverse Populations
- Keywords
- school meals, food choice, dietary intake, plate waste, entrees, fruits, vegetables, milk, children, school nutrition policy
- MeSH terms
- Animals, Child, Diet, Eating, Ethnicity, Female, Food Preferences, Food Services, Fruit, Humans, Male, Milk, Prospective Studies, Schools, Students, Time Factors, Vegetables, Lunch
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