How school lunch can make the grade: experiences in fat modification from the CATCH study

This study evaluated changes in the total fat and saturated fat content of individual school lunch meal components and specific strategies for fat modification in lunch menus offered in 96 elementary schools (56 interventions, 40 control) participating in the Child and Adolescent Trial for Cardiovascular Health (CATCH). The Eat Smart School Nutrition Program--the food service intervention of CATCH--employed a set of 30 techniques (Eat Smart guidelines) and fat and sodium criteria for individual meal components (entree, milk, vegetables, and desert) to help schools prepare meals that adhere more closely to the Dietary Guidelines for Americans. Following a 2 1/2 year intervention, the schools in the intervention group significantly reduced the mean total fat in their entrees and vegetables compared with the schools in the control group. Control and intervention schools also exhibited significant differences over time in mean saturated fat provided by the entree, vegetable, and bread components. Condiments--a minor contributor of fat in lunch menus as offered--also showed significant reductions in fat. Schools that met the Eat Smart fat criteria for entrees, vegetables, milk, and desert offered lunches significantly lower in percent of energy from fat when menus were averaged over five days than schools that failed to meet the criteria. For schools that met the Eat Smart fat criteria for entrees, vegetables, and milk, the amount of reduction in the weekly mean percent of energy from total fat was directly related to the number of days the schools met the criterion for the particular meal component. Entrees showed the greatest relative reduction in fat, followed by vegetables, milk, and deserts, respectively. Schools using the CATCH defatting methods for ground beef in entree recipes on one or more days out of five also were more likely to offer weekly menus lower in total fat and saturated fat than other schools. To decrease fat and saturated fat most efficiently, schools should apply Eat Smart fat criteria, first for entrees, then for vegetables, milk, and desert. Eat Smart criteria and detailed instructions on specific strategies--such as draining and rinsing ground beef--are available to all public schools and may help school food service professional in menu planning, food purchasing, and recipe selection to make lower-fat menu cycles a reality.