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While children spend a substantial amount of time in school, more than half of kids aged 5 to 14 years are also spending time in a child-care setting. This is also an important out-of-home setting for preschool-aged children. This research brief outlines federal food programs and regulations that govern nutrition and physical activity in child-care settings—and what research has demonstrated about the nutritional quality of foods offered in child-care settings.
Age Groups: Adults and Families, Elementary-age children (grades K to 5), Preschool-age children (ages 3 to 5), Young adolescents (grades 6 to 8)
Keywords: Body mass index (BMI), Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), Child Care/Preschool, Food service, Fruits and vegetables, Head Start, Media, Nutrition standards, Physical activity, Snacks, Sugar-sweetened beverages
Focus Area: Early Childhood
Resource Type: Research Review
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July 2022
Child and Adult Care Food Program: Impacts of COVID-19 Differences in Reimbursement Rates on Family Childcare Home Providers, Children, and Families
The Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP), the largest U.S. nutrition program for childcare, provides tiered reimbursements to family childcare homes (FCCHs) to serve healthy foods to a large proportion of children from households with low incomes. Due to COVID-19, all FCCHs on CACFP temporarily received the higher Tier I reimbursement rate. The aims MoreFebruary 2022
Marketing of sugar-sweetened children’s drinks and parents’ misperceptions about benefits for young children
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