The School Lunch. What to Choose?
If you've ever wanted to know how nutritious our school lunches are, this article is for you.
Read on to find out what is in the GHHS Cheese Pizza, Pepperoni Pizza, Uncrustables, Regular Chicken Sandwich, Spicy Chicken Sandwich, and the fries that almost always accompany them. Let's examine the 5 daily lunch items in the Grandview Heights High School's Cafeteria.
Cheese Pizza
An easy slice to grab when you're in a hurry. Cheese Pizza is a standard, go-to meal when the other items don't appeal or you want something that tastes just as good cold as it does hot.
Overall, the Cheese Pizza has a good percentage of protein and carbohydrates, however it is high in sodium and takes up a quarter of your daily fat intake. The Cheese Pizza is a somewhat good source of vitamin A, and has 330 mg of calcium, however it has a grand total of 370 calories, out of the much-needed 1600-2400 calories per day.
Pepperoni Pizza
The GHHS Pepperoni Pizza is very high in protein, has quite a bit of sodium, is high in saturated fats, and is high in calcium. Overall, tastes amazing.
The Uncrustable
As a whole, the Uncrustable has a quarter of your daily fat, 1/5th of your daily protein, and is low in terms of total calories, with a grand total of 330 calories, out of the much-needed 1600-2400 calories per day.
Regular Chicken Sandwich
This sandwich is a breaded chicken patty between two plain buns. No additional sauce or condiments.
The Chicken Sandwich is high in sodium, but also high in protein, making it a good thing to eat if you have a sporting event later in the day.
Spicy Chicken Sandwich
If you want flavor and spice, pick this one. Make sure to have some milk or water nearby.
Similar to the Regular Chicken, the Spicy Chicken Sandwich is high in protein and high in sodium, however the Spicy Chicken Sandwich is also high in polyunsaturated fats.
Bonus: Fries
Since 4 of the 5 daily lunch items are served with fries, it seems wise to include their nutrition facts, too.
So, which one do you choose?
Out of these 5 options, and the percentages of the 2,000 calorie daily intake, it appears that the healthiest (least amount of sodium and fat, with the largest amount of protein, carbs, and calories) is actually the Spicy Chicken Sandwich. The Pepperoni Pizza is highest in fat, and, well... everything else is pretty high in sodium and fat as well. Now you know. the next time you're going to get the school lunch, pick the healthiest choice. (Which is a salad, and not any of these options). However, if like me you are not a salad person, pick the Spicy Chicken Sandwich.
Sources
For items not included in this list, nutritional information was gathered by Kyle Mahan, GHHS Food Services Director.