By Staff Writer: Tricia Tucker
Breakfast is considered the most important meal of the day, and for a good reason. However, many teens fail to recognize the importance of breakfast. According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP), 20-30 percent of adolescents completely skip breakfast each morning. They forget to grab a bite to eat before they leave for school, don’t have enough time, don’t feel hungry, or are trying to limit their calorie input. Howell High School recently opened a new breakfast station in the cafeteria as a way of drawing teens in to eat breakfast.
Sharon Lenard, HHS’s Food Service Director says, “I’d like to see more kids eating breakfast in the mornings.”
The school’s breakfast is located in the cafeteria from 7:00 a.m-7:36 a.m. It consists of ham, bacon, or sausage wraps/ bagels, cereal, pop tarts, peanut butter and jelly uncrustables, and the special of the day. The special can range from French toast to cinnamon buns. Also, each breakfast comes with a carton of milk and a juice.
The new breakfast is an egg bowl that is available Tuesday and Thursday each week. Students watch their eggs be scrambled and then pick ham, bacon, or sausage to be mixed in their bowl. Then, they choose their vegetables to be combined, and placed on top of fresh, warm hash browns. The meal is completed with a sprinkle of cheese as a topping.
“I wanted to get something the kids would like in the morning, more hot food choices,” says Ms. Lenard.
Since it has come out, more students have been engaging in breakfast each morning. Lenard noticed that there has been about 20 or more additional students coming to breakfast since the egg bowl has come out.
Oddly enough, students who eat breakfast have more calories, fiber, and cholesterol in their overall diet compared to those who skip breakfast each morning. However, those who skip breakfast are forced to hold their hunger in until later in the day. Thus, they have a tendency to overeat during lunch and when returning home. Marcie Beth Schneider, a member of the AAP stated that studies have proved that students who eat breakfast tend to function better overall throughout a school day; having more focus, concentration and energy.
Ms. Lenard stated that a study was done years ago on students’ eating habits. The results showed that students who ate breakfast in the morning had better behavior and grades. Also, they rarely went to the office to call home sick.
With so many options in HHS’s cafeteria, the number of students buying breakfast each morning is expected to increase. The egg bowl is a big hit and students seem to come to school earlier than normal just to get one before school starts. With this, HHS staff is hoping that students will have more energy and concentration throughout the school day.
