Pre-Ordering School Lunch Encourages Better Food Choices by Children

Nearly 1/3 of children between ages 6 and 19 are considered obese and their choosing of less healthy foods in school lunchrooms may contribute. To encourage students to select healthier foods, recent research has focused on how environmental changes and behavioral economics can guide children to make healthier choices. This includes the pre-ordering of lunch. Pre-ordering could pre-empt hunger-based, spontaneous selections and eliminate the sensory cues – evocative smells and sights – that lead to less healthy choices. We examine whether having students pre-order their entrée (main dish) improves the healthfulness of entrées selected for lunch