Table 2.
Nutritional Intake of Students Consuming School-Provided Lunch (SL) vs. Lunch Obtained Elsewhere (Other lunch) by Age Group.
| Age Group | 4–8 Years | 9–13 Years | ≥14 | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Adj. Mean | SE | Adj. Mean | SE | Adj. Mean | SE | |
| Macronutrient Content | ||||||
| Lunch Energy Content (kcal) | ||||||
| School lunch | 369.9 | 15.3 | 410.8 | 18.2 | 560.2 | 47.7 |
| Other lunch | 459.2 | 17.8 | 544.7 | 23.7 | 630.3 | 47.7 |
| p-value | 0.0013 | <0.0001 | 0.41 | |||
| Meal Portion (grams) | ||||||
| School lunch | 246.6 | 11.7 | 252 | 34 | 240.4 | 9.3 |
| Other lunch | 298.3 | 8.26 | 314.32 | 35.4 | 269.7 | 8.7 |
| p-value | 0.006 | 0.0016 | 0.07 | |||
| Meal Energy Density (kcal/g) | ||||||
| School lunch | 1.97 | 0.07 | 2.04 | 0.08 | 2.19 | 0.1 |
| Other lunch | 2.31 | 0.08 | 2.35 | 0.12 | 2.51 | 0.09 |
| p-value | 0.0055 | 0.007 | 0.01 | |||
| Meal carbohydrate s (g) | ||||||
| School lunch | 44.0 | 2.1 | 47.0 | 1.8 | 58.0 | 4.1 |
| Other lunch | 54.0 | 2.1 | 62.7 | 2.7 | 65.8 | 4.8 |
| p-value | <0.0001 | 0.6 | 0.11 | |||
| Meal protein (g) | ||||||
| School lunch | 15.7 | 0.8 | 18.4 | 0.9 | 25.4 | 2.9 |
| Other lunch | 17.2 | 0.8 | 21.7 | 1.0 | 26.0 | 2.5 |
| p-value | 0.002 | <0.0001 | 0.30 | |||
| Meal Total Fat (g) | ||||||
| School lunch | 14.9 | 0.6 | 16.9 | 1 | 25.4 | 2.7 |
| Other lunch | 19.9 | 1.1 | 23.5 | 1.3 | 29.6 | 2.7 |
| p-value | 0.0004 | 0.0003 | 0.37 | |||
| Saturated Fat (g) | ||||||
| School lunch | 4.9 | 0.3 | 5.6 | 0.3 | 9.0 | 1.2 |
| Other lunch | 6.4 | 0.4 | 7.1 | 0.4 | 8.2 | 1.0 |
| p-value | 0.0075 | 0.0068 | 0.7 | |||
| Lunch Food Pattern Equivalents and Other Nutrients of Concern | ||||||
| Sodium (mg) | ||||||
| School lunch | 771.7 | 36.8 | 825.7 | 48.7 | 1348.2 | 172.8 |
| Other lunch | 874.5 | 44.8 | 1094.6 | 51.0 | 1278.2 | 148.8 |
| p-value | 0.11 | 0.0004 | 0.81 | |||
| Dietary fiber (g) | ||||||
| School lunch | 3.7 | 0.2 | 3.7 | 0.2 | 4.3 | 0.3 |
| Other lunch | 4.1 | 0.2 | 4.9 | 0.3 | 4.9 | 0.4 |
| p-value | 0.21 | 0.0011 | 0.20 | |||
| Added sugars (tsp. equiv.) 2 | ||||||
| School lunch | 1.2 | 0.1 | 1.5 | 0.1 | 1.9 | 0.5 |
| Other lunch | 2.2 | 0.2 | 2.6 | 0.3 | 2.4 | 0.6 |
| p-value | <0.0001 | 0.003 | 0.64 | |||
| Meal solid fats (g equiv.) | ||||||
| School lunch | 8.0 | 0.6 | 8.5 | 0.5 | 14.2 | 2.5 |
| Other lunch | 8.9 | 0.9 | 9.9 | 0.8 | 11.0 | 1.9 |
| p-value | 0.51 | 0.13 | 0.42 | |||
| Vegetables (cup equiv.) 3 | ||||||
| School lunch | 0.26 | 0.02 | 0.29 | 0.04 | 0.34 | 0.05 |
| Other lunch | 0.30 | 0.03 | 0.36 | 0.04 | 0.54 | 0.05 |
| p-value | 0.18 | 0.26 | 0.007 | |||
| Fruits (cup equiv.) 4 | ||||||
| School lunch | 0.33 | 0.03 | 0.31 | 0.04 | 0.29 | 0.08 |
| Other lunch | 0.28 | 0.04 | 0.22 | 0.04 | 0.13 | 0.07 |
| p-value | 0.26 | 0.09 | 0.20 | |||
| Grains (ounce equiv.) | ||||||
| School lunch | 1.7 | 0.1 | 2.0 | 0.1 | 2.6 | 0.3 |
| Other lunch | 2.0 | 0.1 | 2.4 | 0.1 | 2.7 | 0.3 |
| p-value | 0.27 | 0.017 | 0.80 | |||
| Whole Grains (ounce equiv.) | ||||||
| School lunch | 0.05 | 0.02 | 0.11 | 0.02 | 0.13 | 0.03 |
| Other lunch | 0.25 | 0.04 | 0.23 | 0.04 | 0.18 | 0.04 |
| p-value | <0.0001 | 0.011 | 0.2 | |||
| Refined Grains (ounce equiv.) | ||||||
| School lunch | 1.69 | 0.14 | 1.89 | 0.1 | 2.44 | 0.27 |
| Other lunch | 1.72 | 0.11 | 2.15 | 0.14 | 2.53 | 0.26 |
| p-value | 0.002 | 0.385 | 0.63 | |||
| Protein Foods (ounce equiv.) 5 | ||||||
| School lunch | 1.1 | 0.1 | 1.2 | 0.1 | 1.8 | 0.4 |
| Other lunch | 1.3 | 0.1 | 1.7 | 0.1 | 2.1 | 0.4 |
| p-value | 0.19 | 0.014 | 0.64 | |||
Note: Regression models with adjusted (least-squared) means presented, representing population intake during the lunch meal. Models are adjusted for age in years, sex, race, and income, as quantified by Poverty-Income Ratio based on household size and survey cycle year. 2 Added sugars is calculated using sugar content of foods and ingredients defined by the USDA as added sugars; 3 Vegetables includes dark green, red, orange, starchy and other vegetables; 4 Fruits includes total intact fruit (whole or cut) and fruit juices used as sweeteners in foods, but excludes fruit juices consumed as beverages; 5 Protein foods includes meat, poultry, organ meat, cured meat, fish, eggs, nuts, seeds, and soy products.