{"id":3097,"date":"2021-01-07T23:16:49","date_gmt":"2021-01-08T04:16:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lowcarbaction.org\/?p=3097"},"modified":"2021-01-19T14:25:45","modified_gmt":"2021-01-19T19:25:45","slug":"dietary-guidelines-influence-school-meals-and-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lowcarbaction.org\/dietary-guidelines-influence-school-meals-and-more\/","title":{"rendered":"A Deeper Look: Dietary Guidelines Influence School Meals and More"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Jessica Wharton<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The Low-Carb Action Network (LCAN) has been researching the foods fed to our nation\u2019s children through the government\u2019s National School Lunch Program and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The foods chosen for these programs are largely directed by the U.S. Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), which are highly influential across the entire US population. For people who are economically disadvantaged and rely on the government’s feeding assistance programs, the DGA is especially influential, since the foods provided can make up a majority of that person or family\u2019s diet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The school lunch program, founded in 1946, is a federally assisted meal program operating in public and nonprofit private schools as well as residential childcare institutions. In 2016, the program fed 30.4 million children.[1]<\/span><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which runs the program, contracts with a number of multinational companies to provide food for these programs. From Pepsico alone, here are some items that USDA purchases for children to eat at school:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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