Breakfast is the most important meal of the day! And what could be better than breakfast at school? A well balanced breakfast is important for all students. Let’s look at the facts:
- Students who eat breakfast have better attention and memory
- School breakfast can help combat obesity and encourage healthy eating
- Kids who miss breakfast miss 25% of their daily nutrition
- School Breakfast allows kids time to socialize and engage with others
Recently, I got to see firsthand, just how exciting breakfast can be for students at West Mecklenburg High School in Charlotte, NC. I was invited to the Fuel Up to Play 60 “It Starts with School Breakfast” Celebration Party! The school received a $4000 Fuel Up to Play 60 grant that implements a mobile breakfast cart outside of the cafeteria that supports a Grab and Go Breakfast program. Every student at West Mecklenburg High School has the ability to improve their academic performance, increase nutrient consumption in their diet and fuel their bodies for learning and physical activity, all by grabbing breakfast at school!
Want more excitement? Welcome to the party Jordan Gross (recently retired), Graham Gano and Travelle Wharton of the NFL’s Carolina Panthers. Not to be out done, Panther’s mascot Sir Purr was also in attendance. The morning was filled with breakfast sampling, smoothie tasting, music, autograph signing, dancing, yoga, the Milk Mustache photo booth and fun for all involved.
Check out the picture of me with these milk containers. All I can think of is portion sizes. The one container of milk I am holding is for me and the other must be for Jordan Gross or Travelle Wharton!
As the current President of the North Carolina Dietetic Association (NCDA), it was great to see the collaboration of several organizations for making this possible:
- USDA
- NC DPI
- Charlotte Mecklenburg Schools and CMS Child Nutrition Services
- No Kid Hungry-NC, Share Our Strength
- NC Action for Healthy Kids
- Fuel Up to Play 60
The NCDA mission states “optimizing North Carolina’s health through food and nutrition” and we cannot be more proud of these groups for sharing in this mission and supporting the future of North Carolina students by helping them start with school breakfast!
![](https://thedairyalliance.com/wp-content/uploads/2019/12/bf_thumb.jpg")
Paul Moore, MS, RD, CSSD, LDN, CSCS*D, NSCA-CPT*D is the North Carolina Dietetic Association (NCDA) President for the 2013-2014 member year. He was awarded the Outstanding Dietitian of the Year for the NCDA in 2011-2012 and the Recognized Young Dietitian of the Year in 2012-2013. Paul currently serves on the Weight Management Dietetic Practice Group’s (WM DPG) Executive Committee as the editor for the newsletter, Weight Management Matters. Paul is also a continuing education (CEU) provider for the National Strength and Conditioning Association (NSCA) and National Athletic Trainer’s Association (NATA). Follow Paul @fitness4pros on Twitter.