School food and how it affects our students

How many students do you see a day who actually eat and enjoy the school lunch? How many students do you hear everyday complaining or saying they’re hungry during class? How many students do you see eating junk food at school? A lot. This is a global problem that is very overlooked by many people. It is very harmful to students’ mental and physical health which I believe cannot be overlooked for much longer without becoming a bigger problem.

The school food affects our students because without eating properly everyday it makes it harder for them to focus during school. According to edweek.org, many people have said that students don’t eat before or at school which causes a difficult time to focus throughout the day. Some causes of this issue are that people don’t have enough time in the morning before school to eat or they don’t like the food provided. Students also don’t always have access to food at home because they can’t afford it due to many types of family issues. They rely on the food provided at school, but many don’t like it and go without eating proper or healthy food for most of the day. Students’ grades and mental health get affected which can cause sleepiness, stress, and lack of schoolwork done.

Students spend almost half their day at school, and according to foodrevolution.org, “Children consume up to 50% of their daily calories at school. And for low-income children, lunch may be the only real meal of the day.” This is a real problem for many students all around the world because the school food may not always fit their liking or don’t seem appetizing. A lot of students eat junk food such as chips and candy when they are hungry during school because they don’t like the food given. One thing that could be helpful in this situation is for the school to provide better and healthier food or snacks to eat during class if students do not eat the lunch provided for them. While it is also true that it could cause a distraction and a mess during class time, students can learn to be responsible and learn how to cooperate with eating in class while also being able complete all their work. This would also help with participation in class and allow students to focus. 

Many of our own students agree snacks during class would be a good thing. One of our AJMS students said, “Students get hungry and can’t focus in class which then causes teachers to complain. There can also be students who don’t eat or want the school lunch and still want something to eat.” Having better food and snacks provided in class would help resolve this problem and better students focus, participation, and health.