Backgrounder

Making Ontario schools healthier places to learn

October 20, 2004

The Ontario government is committed to making its publicly funded schools healthier places to learn. The next step in the government's plan is to ensure the availability of healthy food and beverage choices in school vending machines. The government has already provided $20 million to school boards to open up schools to non-profit community groups for use after hours and year-round. Already, boards have begun to sign on to the voluntary agreement, providing increased opportunities for students and other members of the community to stay active. Next steps in the plan will include ensuring students get 20 minutes of daily physical activity by next fall and working with parents to encourage them to pack healthy school lunches.

Why we need to make our schools healthier places to learn

According to the Dietitians of Canada, roughly one-third of a child's daily food intake for the day occurs at school. When children are exposed to less healthy choices at school, they do not compensate by making healthier choices when away from school. Our schools need to help children learn how to make the best nutritional choices and form good eating habits now to carry them through their lives.

Nutrition and learning

Good nutrition is a vital component of children's growth, development and learning. It also plays a significant role in the prevention of chronic diseases, such as heart disease, diabetes, cancer and osteoporosis.

Key facts

According to research cited by the Dietitians of Canada:

• It is well known that poor diet adversely influences the ability to learn and decreases motivation and attentiveness.
• A majority of children and youth do not consume nutritionally balanced or adequate diets. Recent Canadian data show low median intakes for most of the food groups in Canada's Food Guide to Healthy Eating for both genders and across several grade levels.
• Serving sizes of carbonated beverages have increased by 300 per cent since the 1950s.
• Approximately 27 per cent of boys and 23 per cent of girls in Grades 6 and 8 consume candy and chocolate bars daily.
• Milk consumption is almost 30 per cent lower in schools that also sell soft drinks.
• By the time children reach the "tween" years (9 to 12), many have lifestyle habits that could put them in the fast lane for developing cardiovascular disease as early as their 30s.

Recommendations for elementary school vending machines

Based on a report from the Dietitians of Canada, the Ministry of Education has issued the following direction concerning foods allowed in elementary school vending machines. View the table.

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See also:

• News Release: Healthy food in schools means healthier kids – Next step in McGuinty government plan to make schools healthier places to learn
• Gerard Kennedy, Minister of Education – Statement to the Legislative Assembly – Making Ontario schools healthier places to learn
• Report: Making Ontario schools healthier places to learn