Toronto, ON: The Ministry of Child and Youth Services announced yesterday the expansion of Student Nutrition Programs in Ontario. These programs have been shown to ‘influence overall student health and improve learning and behavioral outcomes’. Ontario Public Health Association (OPHA) agrees with this expansion of Student Nutrition Programs and the action the government is taking to provide kids a healthy start.

Yesterday’s announcement revealed that the province will be providing more children with nutritious meals at school through an additional $3 million investment into Ontario’s Student Nutrition Programs to support breakfast and morning meal programs. These programs have been shown to positively influence student’’s overall health. This commitment is well aligned with OPHA’s Strategic Actions to Address Childhood Obesity developed by the Collaborative Chronic Disease Prevention Work Group, where it was identified that creating supportive school environments will promote healthy behaviours as a key component in the strategy to address childhood obesity. Schools are an ideal setting to promote healthy eating and a place to provide foods of maximum nutritional value.Download