First Lady Michelle Obama has made childhood wellness her first major initiative and brought the state of nutrition in school lunches to the public eye.
Childhood obesity is a major concern for the nation and obesity rates have tripled in the last 30 years, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Reducing obesity, through increased activity and improve diet, has become a focus of public health.
The Millbrae School District has made an extra effort to provide healthy lunches. Teamed with the food services group Sodexo, school meals are now far beyond the pizza-with-a-side-of-tater-tots meals of the past, and are instead designed to be well-balanced and nutritious.
"Sodexo is committed to the overall well-being of the students we serve in the Millbrae School District and as part of that commitment it is extremely important for us to offer healthy entrée choices," Millbrae District Food Service Consultant, Kathy Montalbo said.
The Millbrae School District participates in the National School Lunch Program, which dictates strict dietary guidelines.
"Our dairy and whole grains are less than 35 percent calories from fat, less than 10 percent calories from saturated fat and less than 35 percent sugar by weight," Montalbo said, addressing the new guidelines. "We also offer a minimum of six choices of fresh fruits and vegetables daily."
Each day, five healthy options are available to students.
As an example of what a lunch meal may look like, this Tuesday elementary students were offered Teriyaki chicken and broccoli over seasoned brown rice, a baked all-white chicken patty on a whole wheat bun and three other nutritious choices.
"The children really enjoy our freshly made salads, freshly made sandwiches on whole wheat bread, and all of the whole grain products we offer," she said.
Montalbo encourages communication between the staff, parents and the overall Millbrae community as much as possible. Menus are available online as well as nutrition information.
"We all play a role in nourishing and educating students about making healthy choices and we can really impact students' lives if we work together," Montalbo said.
School lunch menus and nutrition information can be viewed through the Sodexo website.
