"Local School Wellness Policies: Assessing School District Strategies for Improving Children's Health"
Most of the school wellness policies that districts now have in place are weak, a report concludes.
The study, released last month by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation of Princeton, N.J., draws from a representative sample of 500 to 600 districts that had wellness policies in place at the start of either the 2006-07 or 2007-08 school year.
Researchers found, for instance, that while most districts outlined strong nutritional guidelines for school meals, fewer requirements were in place for food sold in á la carte lines, vending machines, and school stores.
The study also found that only 18 percent of elementary school students were enrolled in a district that requires daily recess, and that some districts require a specific amount of time for physical activity but not for physical education.