Health panel approves new nutrition rules for Mass. public schools

By Kay Lazar, Globe Staff

The state Public Health Council this morning unanimously approved new rules aimed to improve the nutrition of food served in Massachusetts public schools.

The nutrition standards, which take effect in the 2012-13 school year and are believed to be the strictest in the country, prohibit fried foods, sugary and artificially sweetened beverages, and foods high in sodium. The rules apply to food sold in vending machines, snack bars, and a la carte offerings in cafeterias.

The council delayed a ban on flavored milk until August 2013, however, to give schools time to find other ways to encourage children to drink milk.

“We knew that people were going to have strong feelings about this and were concerned that overall milk consumption would drop,” Dr. Lauren Smith, medical director of the Department of Public Health, said afterward. “We wanted to give schools time to prepare so it can be done in a seamless way.” Studies have shown that milk consumption drops slightly when flavored milk is banned but then rebounds, she added.

The new rules reflect concerns about bulging waistlines among the state’s children and adolescents -- more than one-third of fourth-graders, for example, are overweight or obese.

Faced with the troubling numbers, lawmakers last year ordered the Department of Public Health to draft a healthier menu for students, and the resulting standards are heavy on low-fat snacks, whole-grain baked goods, fruits and vegetables.

At the core of the new standards is the elimination of sugary beverages, which have been identified as a prime culprit in the obesity epidemic.

Studies have linked even moderate consumption of soft drinks to substantially elevated risk of heart disease and diabetes. Harvard researchers have shown, for instance, that a 20-ounce soft drink contains the equivalent of 17 teaspoons of sugar.

The new standards are closely modeled on recommendations from national health panels and are similar to food practices already in place in some schools, including in Boston, Cambridge, and Somerville.

The rules will not apply to food served in schools’ main cafeteria line because the federal government, which pays a substantial share of that cost, sets the standards for that fare. Earlier this year, the US Department of Agriculture proposed rules to make cafeteria food healthier by requiring more fruits and vegetables and less sodium and saturated fat.

The state rules will apply only to public schools and only during the school day and a half-hour before and after classes.