How do you get middle schoolers to eat more fruit? Give them smoothies

This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: At lunchtime in rural Maine middle schools, University of Maine researchers stood at two points in the cafeteria. At the first, students received a numbered card after picking up their meals.

Researchers photographed each tray from above. Before students dumped what was left into the trash, researchers photographed the trays again. The images captured a problem that plays out every day in school cafeterias: Students were offered fruit, but much of it was never eaten.

Sometimes they did not take it. Sometimes an apple came back with one bite missing. Other fruit was barely touched.

For UMaine researchers, those trays became the starting point for a larger question: What would middle school students actually eat? A three-year study led by researchers in UMaine's School of Food and Agriculture found that offering frozen fruit smoothies during lunch increased the amount of fruit students selected and consumed while sharply reducing waste. The work also showed something broader: Asking adolescents what they want—and involving them in designing a solution—can change their food choices.

The research led to HEALTHY, or Helping Early Adolescents Live Their Healthiest Youth, a four-part smoothie and nutrition education program developed at UMaine. The program is now available to schools nationwide through a free online toolkit. The findings are also informing efforts to change federal school meal rules that can make it harder for schools to offer smoothies regularly.

"Middle school is often an overlooked age group when it comes to nutrition programming," said Jade McNamara, associate professor of human nutrition at UMaine and registered dietitian, who directed the research. "Adolescents are at an age where they can tell you what they want to eat and what they're interested in. And they have strong opinions." The age group also represents an important point for intervention, as fruit consumption declines as children move into adolescence.