Nutrition & Healthy Eating
Fuelling Student Success at the TDSB
Find out more about the many ways TDSB supports student nutrition at the links below. To return to this page, just use your browser's back button. Feeding hungry students Access to fresh and affordable food is a starting point to a healthy diet. Lack of access to healthy foods has affected both low-income urban and rural communities for decades. Hungry students have challenges learning. With more then 107, 000 students relying on schools for the first meal of their day, our Nutrition Programs are an essential, easy and cost-saving way to feed students and teach them healthy habits. Cultivating healthy eating habits Students face many obstacles when it comes to maintaining their health. An increasing availability of tempting high calorie, low nutrient food makes making healthy choices hard, and is contributing to rising levels of obesity in adults and kids. Obesity affects children both physically and mentally, and can prevent them from reaching their potential and getting the most out of life. Learn about the Lifestyle Journey Nutrition Program, a grade 6-8 Social Studies pilot project where students to learn how to make informed lifestyle decisions for healthy eating, living and exercise!. A healthy body image is often as important as a healthy body. Students are under increasing pressure to achieve an “ideal” body size and shape that is often unrealistic, and can lead to a variety of eating disorders which are damaging to ones health and can even be fatal. Learn more at Health Starts with a Healthy Body Image. Also check out our physical health & fitness page to read more on how the TDSB is is preventing childhood obesity by getting kids active. Growing healthy right in the schoolyard TDSB schools, especially elementary schools, are increasingly tapping into the benefits of food gardening. For many, the food garden is an integral part of a larger vision to create a diverse, ecological, and interactive school ground that fosters both play and learning. Schoolyard gardens provide opportunities for children to dig and have fun, learn how to grow food, study nutrition, taste healthy foods, and examine environmental and social issues related to food and food security. A fresh approach on the menu We recognize the important role school cafeterias play in our student’s health. We believe our students can make healthy choices if they are given healthy alternatives to traditional cafeteria fare. The TDSB is committed to providing students with nutritious and also delicious snack and lunch options in our cafeterias. Beginning in September 2011, It’s bye-bye french fries, hello more fruits and veggies. Ontario’s new School Food and Beverage Policy requires at least 80 percent of food served in school cafeterias to be fresh produce, whole grains and extra-lean meats. TDSB’s Nutrition Services staff worked for months to source ingredients and develop kid-friendly menus that should please both parents and students. They've even managed to include a healthy, oven-baked version of “french fries.”
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Making the connection between what we eat and how it affects wellness is one of the most important lessons we can learn when it comes to healthy eating. In TDSB, we focus on empowering students to take charge of their own wellness, and sharing the knowledge with their families to promote healthy eating throughout their school community. 
shows the significant role a nutritious breakfast plays in students' academic success. Unfortunately, many of our students are starting their day without the fuel they need to be their best. The study found that 41% of high school students are not eating breakfast on a regular basis and in some of our inner city communities, this number increased to over 60%.
