{"id":68419,"date":"2025-09-16T22:16:10","date_gmt":"2025-09-16T22:16:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/68419\/"},"modified":"2025-09-16T22:16:10","modified_gmt":"2025-09-16T22:16:10","slug":"fast-paced-school-lunch-could-create-long-term-eating-issues-nutritionist","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/68419\/","title":{"rendered":"Fast-paced school lunch could create \u2018long term eating issues\u2019 – Nutritionist\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"

Reports indicate that some Irish primary schools offer as little as 10 minutes of lunchtime for students, leading children to take home lunchboxes full of food.\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Sports nutritionist Daniel Davey said the issue seems to stem from the school curriculum itself.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cMy little girl started school this week and her lunchbox is coming home with food in it,\u201d he told Lunchtime Live<\/strong><\/a>.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen we asked, she started talking about the bell, and I was like, \u2018Geez, there must be something here\u2019.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSo, I put out a video asking the question and the response was overwhelming.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cParents, teachers, even principals acknowledging\u00a0that this is an issue; lunchboxes are coming home because children don\u2019t have enough time to eat.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

According to Mr Davey, while schools are allocated 30 minutes of a break, 20 minutes are typically spent outside on yard.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, just 10 minutes are afforded for children to go to the bathroom, wash their hands, get out their lunchboxes and actually sit down to eat, he said.<\/p>\n

\n<\/blockquote>\n

\u201cThere\u2019s a very strong body of evidence that suggests that it should actually be a minimum of 20 minutes [for children to eat their food],\u201d Mr Davey said. <\/p>\n

He acknowledged that with exercise and learning taking priority, it may not be possible for schools to accommodate this.<\/p>\n

However, Mr Davey pointed out that children tend to make less healthy decisions when they are put under pressure to eat.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"eating Eating school lunch at a primary school in Worcestershire, UK<\/p>\n

\u201cWe know what the research suggests, but I want to be practical,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cEven if there\u2019s a modification, greater flexibility \u2013 or even [if] an extra five minutes is allocated, I think that could make a big difference in the long term.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIf we look at modern society, we\u2019ve moved towards a very convenience focus and there isn\u2019t the same attention placed on the cooking and the skills that are needed.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI think we\u2019re talking about creating long-term eating issues and poor relationships with food<\/strong><\/a> if this isn\u2019t addressed.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Department response<\/p>\n

A response issued by the Department of Education and Youth said that “a typical school day for Junior classes is 4 hours and 40 minutes and Senior classes 5 hours and 40 minutes with appropriate recreation i.e. 30 minutes.”<\/p>\n

“Where a recreation interval\/break of a longer duration is taken (for example when children are allowed to have lunch in the classroom prior to the official commencement of the recreation interval\/break), the length of the school day must be extended correspondingly,” a spokesperson said.<\/p>\n

“Under the provisions of the Education Act, 1998, the Board of Management is responsible for the day to day running of a school.<\/p>\n

“The arrangement within the recreation interval\/break for pupils to eat their lunch is a matter for each Board of Management to determine and the Department has not issued guidelines to schools in this regard.”<\/p>\n

Main image: Primary school kids sitting at table eating their packed lunches and talking. Image: MBI. 25 October 2018<\/strong><\/p>\n