At the conference of high school and student dormitory principals in Bled (January 28-29, 2026), among other important topics, the issue of school nutrition also received attention. Available data shows a trend of deteriorating dietary habits among high school students, which will not improve on its own without targeted measures. This is very clearly highlighted by the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) study, conducted by the National Institute of Public Health (NIJZ) every four years [1]. Results from 2022 compared to 2018 show further deterioration in selected indicators of dietary habits, as fewer and fewer adolescents regularly eat breakfast and fewer consume fresh fruit and vegetables daily.
A similar warning is given by the national study on Slovenian dietary habits SI.Menu 2017/18: excess body weight and obesity are widespread in Slovenia and increasing, with risk being even more pronounced in socially vulnerable groups [2]. Even more revealing are data on diet composition: Slovenians still consume too little fish, legumes and nuts, and especially too little (particularly fresh) vegetables, approximately only one-third of recommended amounts. In adolescents, this deficit is often not compensated with higher quality foods, but rather with a larger proportion of energy-dense, nutrient-poor choices that are easily accessible, affordable, and constantly present in their everyday environment. Such a dietary pattern quickly becomes established during adolescence and represents an important starting point for health risks in adulthood.
Adolescents often show interest in nutrition topics, but encounter them rarely and marginally in the high school environment.
Organization of Nutrition in High Schools
1. Legal Requirements
Nutrition in high schools, similar to kindergartens and primary schools, is systemically regulated. Its implementation is determined by the School Nutrition Act [3], and further defined in detail by the Guidelines for Nutrition in Educational Institutions [4]. These require balanced, nutritionally adequate and sustainability-oriented nutrition, adapted to the needs of adolescents, and stipulate that school nutrition must provide students with at least 30% of their daily energy and nutritional needs.
2. Quality of Nutrition in Practice
During a period of intense growth and development, high school nutrition represents a significant portion of students' daily intake. At the same time, this is the last period of education in which the school environment can still actively and systematically contribute to forming healthy eating habits before young people fully assume responsibility for their dietary choices. The quality of nutrition in high schools is therefore not a marginal topic, but an important public health issue.
Nevertheless, the national report on the implementation of nutritional guidelines in educational institutions [5] reveals that it is precisely in high schools that the implementation of nutritional recommendations is least consistent. Compared to kindergartens and primary schools, high school institutions on average less frequently meet recommendations regarding the inclusion of recommended foods, especially vegetables, legumes and fish, while more frequently allowing the offering of energy-dense, nutrient-poor meals.
These results are largely contributed to by the organization of nutrition through external providers, which is common in high schools. This is not problematic in itself, but requires clearly defined responsibilities and professional supervision. Differences between individual institutions indicate that the consistency of implementing nutritional guidelines can be primarily influenced by professional training and/or clearly expressed interest of the person managing this area.
3. Organizational Challenges
The organization of school nutrition is a content-wise and organizationally demanding task, as it requires good knowledge of nutritional guidelines, nutritional composition of foods, public procurement procedures, meal planning, and monitoring of meal quality. In high schools, this task can be performed by an employee of any profession, without the requirement for prior professional knowledge in the field of nutrition, with regulations only stipulating a reduction in teaching obligations based on the number of students [6]. Only in a smaller portion of high schools is the organization of nutrition led by appropriately trained staff, which as a rule is also reflected in more consistent implementation of nutritional guidelines.
A major challenge is also the fact that many high schools do not have their own kitchen, but provide nutrition through external providers. The possibilities for choice are very uneven: especially in smaller and more remote areas, there are few suitable providers or they are harder to access due to logistical and price constraints. Although external providers are obliged to follow nutritional guidelines, the analysis [5] showed that compliance of offered meals with guidelines is inconsistently verified within high schools, as a result of which meals often do not meet the requirements specified in the guidelines.
Such an arrangement means that the management of school nutrition among high schools is implemented very differently, which in practice is often reflected in greater differences in the quality of school nutrition between individual high school institutions.
4. Opportunities for Improvement
The described challenges show that high school nutrition cannot be addressed with one-time or quick measures. With targeted and gradual steps, it therefore makes sense to seek opportunities for improvement primarily within the existing system.
Empowering persons responsible for organizing nutrition - Given the complexity of school nutrition, one key opportunity is targeted training of persons who cover this area. Knowledge of nutritional guidelines, basics of meal planning and quality monitoring would enable more consistent implementation of guidelines in practice and contribute to healthier school nutrition.
Joint initiatives at the level of school management - Through the Association of High School and Student Dormitory Principals, it is possible to formulate coordinated initiatives to relevant ministries. Among the first, it would be sensible to open a call for the inclusion of high schools in the school fruit scheme and for possibilities of centralized preparation of high school meals, especially in environments where adequate supply is lacking.
Empowering students and strengthening nutritional literacy - Targeted, content-clear and annually recurring workshops (at least once per year) in the field of nutritional literacy (e.g., preparing school snacks, reading labels, the impact of individual foods on health) can contribute to greater acceptance of higher quality meals and reduce the gap between recommendations and students' actual choices.
Involving parents - Parents have an important influence on adolescents' dietary habits even during adolescence. Short, clearly targeted messages and specifically prepared materials for parents can influence balanced meal preparation at home and encourage higher quality meal choices in the school environment.
Quality nutrition in high schools is an important part of caring for the health and long-term potential of adolescents, where it is crucial that it is understood as an integral part of school operation and not as an additional burden.
References:
- Jeriček K. H., et al. Health-related behaviour in the school period among adolescents in Slovenia. 2023, NIJZ: https://nijz.si/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/HBSC_e_verzija_pop_2023-2.pdf.
- Gregorič, M., et al. Various aspects of nutrition of Slovenian residents aged from 3 months to 74 years. 2019.
- School Nutrition Act (ZŠolPre-1). 2013, Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia: Slovenia.
- ZRSŠ, Guidelines for nutrition in educational institutions. 2024: Ljubljana.
- Gregorič M., et al., Analysis of the implementation of nutritional guidelines in educational institutions. 2024, NIJZ: https://nijz.si/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/POROCILO_SOLSKA-ANKETA_koncno.pdf.
- Regulation on norms and standards for the implementation of educational programs and educational program in the field of secondary education. 2010, Official Gazette of the Republic of Slovenia: Slovenia.