Lawrence LeBlond for redOrbit.com Your Universe Online

The war on childhood obesity has just received a big helping hand. New federal nutrition standards are going into effect this year at schools all across the country curbing sales of junk foods and sugary drinks in an effort to help keep Americas children slim and trim.

The new regulations require all schools to meet strict standards in order to get federal meal reimbursements. Many schools are overhauling their lunch menu programs in accordance with the new standards, but some have already made significant improvements over the past few years.

In adding support to the federal standards, a recent national study looked at how regulation of foods and beverages sold outside federal meal programs at schools may have helped curb childhood obesity.

The study found that fifth graders in states with strong competitive food laws gained less weight than did kids in states with no such legislation.

Study author Daniel R. Taber, of the University of Illinois at Chicago, said there is strong evidence that such laws can have a positive impact. But we need to recognize that it is not going to influence all students.

Childhood obesity has ballooned over the past 20-30 years, with more than a third of US children now either overweight or obese, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

The US Department of Agricultures Healthy and Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 is one of a number of programs geared toward curbing obesity by providing healthier school foods. Another recent study has shown that only half as many students as in 2006 can still buy sugary sodas in school.

However, noted Taber, there has been little evidence showing that such programs actually work.

So, in the new study, published in the journal Pediatrics, Taber and colleagues tapped into an earlier study following 6,300 students in 40 states from 2003 to 2006, focusing on fifth-to-eighth graders. Researchers compared childrens body mass index (BMI) with competitive food laws in each state.

Read more:
States With Tough School-Nutrition Laws Show Slimmer Kids