US Agriculture Department proposes to cut down on sugar and salt in school meals

New standards for tackling obesity and providing nutritious school meals to millions of American children were proposed by the United States Agriculture Department on Friday."Many children aren't getting the nutrition they need, and diet-related diseases are on the rise," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, in a statement.

"Research shows school meals are the healthiest meals in a day for most kids, proving that they are an important tool for giving kids access to the nutrition they need for a bright future," he added.

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The changes proposed, if incorporated, in the federally funded school meals would slowly reduce the children's intake of sodium in a week, which increases the risk of heart disease or high blood pressure.

This would also limit the sugar intake, which can lead to Type 2 diabetes or obesity, by targeting products which are high in sugar like breakfast cereals and yoghurts.

As per the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, around 20 per cent or 14.7 million children and adolescents between the age of 2-19 in the United States are obese.

Meanwhile, as per the proposed standard, low-fat and non-fat milk will be more accessible to younger children while older children will be allowed to consume flavoured milk "with reasonable limits on added sugars".

The proposal has emphasised whole grains which are said to decrease the risk of stroke, cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

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As per the Agriculture Department, around 30 million children participate every year in the National School Lunch Programme, through which low-cost or no-cost meals are provided in non-profit private schools and public schools.

Around 15 million children are enrolled every year in the School Breakfast Programme.

The changes proposed will remain open for people's comment for 60 days before they are adopted for the school year 2024-25.

(With inputs from agencies)

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