Posted on: Sunday, May 1, 2005
Please hold your trays in the upright dietary position
Advertiser Staff
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| In Hawai'i's public schools, lunches — such as this medley with a wiener in a roll — use the traditional food-based menu planning approach, in which schools must offer five food items from among four food components: meat/meat alternate, vegetables and/or fruits, grains/breads, and milk.
Gregory Yamamoto • The Honolulu Advertiser |
These lunches were served April 4-8 at a Honolulu-area public elementary school. The meals are commonly served in public schools statewide.
School lunches must meet recommendations of the federal Dietary Guidelines for Americans. No more than 30 percent of a student's calories in each lunch should come from fat, and less than 10 percent from saturated fat.
Menus are also designed so that lunches provide at least one-third of the Recommended Dietary Allowances of protein, vitamin A, vitamin C, iron, calcium and calories.
Local school food authorities decide what specific foods to serve and how they are prepared.
Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food and Nutrition Service, National School Lunch Program Rebecca Matsuura, a registered dietician at the Kapi'olani Medical Center for Women and Children, rounded out the chart with breakfast and dinner recommendations for each day. Based on the lunch analysis, Matsuura suggests home meals that are low in fat and sodium, and high in fiber, to balance out a child's daily nutritional needs (she recommends serving each breakfast with 8 ounces of skim milk).
Monday
Menu: Batter-fried fish with sauce, steamed rice, corn and diced carrots, apple wedge and a raisin roll Nutrition: 674 calories (34 percent of the daily value), 15 g total fat (23 percent of the daily value), 4 g saturated fat, 32 mg cholesterol, 618 mg sodium, 110 g carbohydrates (including 3 g fiber and 23 g sugar), 26 g protein (52 percent of the daily value), vitamin A (76 percent of the daily value), vitamin C (7 percent of the daily value), iron (32 percent of the daily value) and calcium (34 percent of the daily value) Home meal recommendations: Cheerios with skim milk and half a banana for breakfast; roast turkey with brown rice and asparagus for dinner
Menu: Fried noodles with frankfurter, won bok and romaine salad, and pineapple chunks Nutrition: 678 calories (34 percent of the daily value), 25 g total fat (38 percent of the daily value), 7 g saturated fat, 36 mg cholesterol, 1,920 mg sodium, 93 g carbohydrates (including 3 g fiber and 48 g sugar), 24 g protein (48 percent of the daily value), vitamin A (94 percent of the daily value), vitamin C (71 percent of the daily value), iron (24 percent of the daily value) and calcium (40 percent of the daily value) Home meal recommendations: A slice of whole-wheat toast with a teaspoon of butter and jelly, and a boiled egg for breakfast; steamed fish seasoned with garlic, ginger or any herb of your preference for dinner
Menu: Chili with steamed rice, tossed salad, apricot halves and corn bread Nutrition: 807 calories (40 percent of the daily value), 22 g total fat (35 percent of the daily value), 11 g saturated fat, 99 mg cholesterol, 836 mg sodium, 128 g carbohydrates (including 5 g fiber and 42 g sugar), 24 g protein (48 percent of the daily value), vitamin A (74 percent of the daily value), vitamin C (19 percent of the daily value), iron (28 percent of the daily value) and calcium (56 percent of the daily value)
Home meal recommendations: English muffin with a tablespoon of peanut butter and an orange for breakfast; tofu, broccoli and carrot stir-fry, using cooking spray, for dinner
Menu: Turkey pastrami on a whole-wheat bun with lettuce, oven-baked potatoes and orange wedges Nutrition: 657 calories (33 percent of the daily value), 20 g total fat (31 percent of the daily value), 8 g saturated fat, 66 mg cholesterol, 1,175 mg sodium, 91 g carbohydrates (including 4 g fiber and 33 g sugar), 28 g protein (57 percent of the daily value), vitamin A (63 percent of the daily value), vitamin C (60 percent of the daily value), iron (26 percent of the daily value) and calcium (42 percent of the daily value) Home meal recommendations: Light yogurt with granola and a cup of strawberries for breakfast; baked chicken seasoned with bread crumbs and herbs, with brown rice and spinach salad for dinner
Menu: Ground-beef lasagna, tossed salad, diced pears, and a slice of french bread or roll Nutrition: 716 calories (36 percent of the daily value), 32 g total fat (49 percent of the daily value), 14 g saturated fat, 119 mg cholesterol, 1,418 mg sodium, 63 g carbohydrates (including 5 g fiber and 26 g sugar), 43 g protein (87 percent of the daily value), vitamin A (57 percent of the daily value), vitamin C (66 percent of the daily value), iron (32 percent of the daily value) and calcium (42 percent of the daily value) Home meal recommendations: Vegetable omelette (with mushrooms, bell peppers and tomatoes), served with salsa rather than ketchup, with brown rice and grapes for breakfast; a homemade vegetarian pizza with dark-green vegetables, mushrooms, tomato sauce and a whole-wheat crust for dinner
Deanna Moncrief, a nutritionist who serves as a consultant with the state Department of Education, provided a nutritional analysis of each day's lunch. The analysis is based on serving sizes for fourth-grade students. According to Moncrief's analysis, each meal provides 33 percent to 40 percent of a day's recommended calories for a 9-year-old. The amounts are estimates because recipes vary among schools.
Federal nutrition requirements for school lunches
Tuesday
Wednesday
Thursday
Friday
