Attention chronic snackers! Skipping regular meals during school can impact energy, focus

By Julissa Sanders

April 9, 2026

Youthcast Media Group®

In 2010, Michelle Obama launched “Let’s Move!” a public health campaign aimed at reducing childhood obesity and improving nutrition in school lunches. The program aimed to make school lunches healthier by including more fruits and vegetables and reducing fat and sugar in students’ diets.

Many public schools, including Annandale High School in Fairfax County, Virginia, made significant changes to their cafeteria offerings. FCPS has started to add new menu items, including Peruvian chicken drumsticks, chicken masala pizza, veggie chili and teriyaki chicken.

Some students do not enjoy the taste and textures of the new, healthier options, and may even think it is unsafe to eat. In 2013, after the county transitioned to additive-free, 100% beef patties, students rejected the option so badly that FCPS went back to 26-ingredient burgers.

“I don’t eat school food, I heard some stories about how it can mess up your stomach,” senior Carlos Mejia-Gonzalez said. 

Some would rather skip lunch and eat when they get home.

Elliot Cardwell (courtesy of Cardwell).

“The lunch is either not good or it would be really small. Sometimes it would be super greasy and not taste good. So I’ll just wait till after practice to go home and get food,” freshman Elliot Cardwell said.

Students who don’t eat lunch may turn to snacks to curb their hunger. Some students skip their lunch period to complete school work, snacking instead of eating in the cafeteria. Snacks are convenient, quick and easy to have while studying. 

“If lunch doesn’t seem good to eat, I would just skip it. I would eat granola bars, chips or sometimes just drink water,” sophomore Isabella Izaguirre said.

AHS has three vending machines: one machine carries drinks while the two others have snacks like reduced fat and baked Lays potato chips, Hot Cheetos, and Welch’s fruit snacks.

Some students resort to eating snacks every day, which certainly doesn’t meet the nutritional requirements for a young adult. Even “healthier” options like baked chips don’t have enough fiber, protein, or micronutrients to be a full meal. 

While anything can be a part of a balanced diet, simply snacking on chips instead of having a meal can leave students hungry, irritable, and tired throughout the day. 

“A student that just has a snack for lunch, after half an hour, they feel really tired and sluggish. If they eat a good balanced diet with proteins [and] complex carbohydrates then their energy level stays nice throughout the whole day,” Head Athletic Trainer Ryan Hughes said.

When students skip lunch and only eat snacks, their performance in the classroom can also seriously decline. Being exhausted and sluggish through all classes can impact how much information students can process. Research has shown that nutrition plays a key role in cognitive function and academic performance, meaning that students who don’t fuel properly can struggle with focus and memory.

Students who play sports or live an active lifestyle can lose muscle mass and endurance without proper nutrition. Replacing meals with snacks, especially breakfast, can lead to health problems in the future as well as lower grades and reduced attention and cognitive performance.

Cafeteria food might not be the tastiest food out there, but it does provide nutrition to get through the day. Don’t replace a meal with a snack - it can seriously hurt you in the long run.

Cafeteria food might not be the tastiest food out there, but it does provide nutrition to get through the day. Don’t replace a meal with a snack - it can seriously hurt you in the long run.

Julissa Sanders is a sophomore at Annandale High School in Annandale, Va., one of Youthcast Media Group’s high school classroom partners. YMG Intern Sarah Gandluri contributed to this report.