School nutrition standards get high marks from dietitians
January 29, 2010, posted by Dietitian's of Canada
“Ontario’s school nutrition standards released Friday by the Ministry of Education are an important step in creating an environment to support healthy eating”, says Linda Dietrich, Regional Executive Director for Dietitians of Canada (DC). Students are taught about healthy eating in the classroom, and it is important that the foods available in school support them in making healthy choices. “The new nutrition standards are set to help students eat better at school by emphasizing foods that are higher in essential nutrients and lower in fat and salt” continues Dietrich. Experiencing healthy food at school may impact food choices at home as well. Good food habits formed early in life can result in improved health during adulthood.
Dietitians from across the province provided input as the standards were developed, and will be working to support schools in the implementation over the next year. DC and its member dietitians provide tools and resources to assist schools in promoting healthy eating and more will be developed to support these new nutrition standards in collaboration with the Ontario government and other partners.
“A great resource for healthy eating information is the EatRight Ontario service”, says Dietrich. “Callers can speak directly to a Registered Dietitian at no charge, or have their questions answered by email.”
Understanding nutrition information on food labels is key to applying the new school nutrition standards, and some resources already available include Healthy Eating is in Store for You www.healthyeatingisinstore.ca as well as nutrition labelling videos which can be found on the EatRight Ontario site www.eatrightontario.ca/en/videolist.aspx.
The Ontario Ministry of Education school food and beverage policy (PPM 150) and nutrition standards can be found at www.edu.gov.on.ca/eng/healthyschools/policy.html.
Dietitians of Canada represents almost 6,000 dietitians across Canada and is committed to promoting the health and well-being of consumers through food and nutrition. For trusted information on nutrition and healthy eating and to register to receive DC’s regular nutrition updates, visit the Dietitians of Canada website at www.dietitians.ca
EatRight Ontario offers advice on nutrition and daily food choices to help the people of Ontario live well and stay healthy. Dietitians of Canada and the Ministry of Health Promotion are working together to give the people of Ontario more ways to connect with a Registered Dietitian and get trusted advice on healthy eating at no charge. There are three easy ways to reach a Registered Dietitian at EatRight Ontario:
Call the toll-free number: 1-877-510-510-2 from 9am-5pm Monday to Friday, with evening hours Tuesday and Thursday to 9pm.
Email the service at www.ontario.ca/eatright and receive a personal reply from a Registered Dietitian.
Visit the website for articles, menus and recipes at www.ontario.ca/eatright.
