BERKELEY, California — A petition which started in June was trending this week on social media. It called for kids to have more time to each lunch.
The petition gained traction with the Washington Post and other news outlets as a back-to-school story.
Surveys over the last few years showed that some public schools give children less than 20 minutes to eat.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends students have at least 20 minutes of seated time to eat. Not having enough time to eat lunch can cause less ability to focus, lower energy levels, and less impulse control.
“During the school year, a substantial number of students had insufficient time to eat,” said the abstract of a study by Juliana F.W. Cohen and others.
The lack of time “was associated with significantly decreased entrée, milk, and vegetable consumption compared with students who had more time to eat,” the abstract, published in 2016, said.
“School policies that encourage lunches with at least 25 minutes of seated time might reduce food waste and improve dietary intake.”
(Video from WTNH.com)
