Percentage Of Children With High Blood Pressure Declined 11% Among Those Who Attended A School With Universal Free Lunch

School participation in universal free meals via the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) was associated with an 11% net decrease in the proportion of students with a high blood pressure (BP) measurement over a five-year period, according to a recent analysis. The CEP is a federal policy enabling the provision of free school meals in low-income areas without collecting household applications. More than 47,000 schools participated in 2024, reaching more than 23 million children. Expanding access to school meals could promote better health, the analysis found.

To the extent that CEP was associated with a net reduction in . . .