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Childhood obesity has consistently been a leading issue in the National Poll on Children’s Health annual list of the top 10 health concerns for kids. Both exercise and good nutrition are needed to help address this major child health problem. Now that kids are back to school, it’s important for parents to consider the nutrition their children are receiving during the school day.

In a poll in 2009, we asked parents across the country how they would grade their children’s public schools when it comes to school nutrition and healthy food choices. One-third of parents gave their children’s schools an “A” for offering healthy food choices, while 12% gave their children’s schools a “D” or an “F”. Parents gave primary schools much better marks for healthy food choices than they gave secondary schools. Read the full report - Healthy food choices: can schools improve their grades?

School nutrition is an important factor in addressing and remedying childhood obesity. This NPCH Report shows that parents see definite room for improvement in the amount of healthy food choices offered at their children’s schools.