16 American Teenagers Shared Their School Lunches, And Boy, We Still Have A Long Way To Go

"School lunches in America are a joke."

In 2010, the Obamas helped sign the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act into a law. This resulted in more nutrient dense school meals, as well as free lunches for children from low-income families.

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Hi, icons!

While a ton of progress was made from this, we're unfortunately still a long way from reaching a gold standard in every school cafeteria across the country. Michelle even said so herself in the Instagram caption for a new nutrition brand she's launching:

michelleobama

"When my girls were younger, no choice felt more important than the quality of the food and drinks I gave them. I constantly found myself wishing there were more healthy options available for moms like me. That’s a big part of the reason why I worked so hard as First Lady to help kids and families eat better and lead healthier lives.

We made some incredible progress during those years, but today, our kids continue to face a generational health crisis. There’s a lot of work left to do.

I’ve learned that if you want to change the game on this issue, you can do a lot from the outside. But to achieve the kind of long-term change our kids deserve, you’ve also got to change the food and beverage industry itself. You’ve got to get inside.

That’s exactly what I’m doing.

I’m proud to announce the national launch of a new company called @PLEZiNutrition — and I’m thrilled to be serving as a Co-Founder and Strategic Partner. Our goal isn’t just to provide healthy drinks and snacks for kids, but to jumpstart a race to the top that will transform the entire food industry. We want to be a partner that parents can count on, lead with our values, and drive the kind of change I’ve always hoped to see.

Our first product is a drink called PLEZi for kids ages 6–12. We chose to start with a kids’ drink because, on average, kids are consuming 53 pounds of added sugar per year. And sugar-sweetened beverages are the leading source of that added sugar.

Make no mistake, water and milk are the best options for your kids. And kids shouldn’t be regularly drinking anything other than water or milk until they’re at least 5 years old. But once kids become school-aged, drinking only water and milk isn’t a reality. Nearly two-thirds of young people are consuming sugary drinks on any given day.

We simply need a better option for kids and parents. That’s why PLEZi has less sugar, less sweetness, and more nutrients like fiber and potassium than you’ll find in many drinks out there. And the best part? It tastes delicious. But this is about far more than a kids drink. It’s about building a healthier generation of children. If you’re interested in learning more, check out Plezi.com."

If you don't believe we're still in the midst of a crisis, just take a look at these 16 lunches kids were allegedly served at their schools:

1. "My school lunch today had maggots in the applesauce."

Competitive-Ear-6443 / Via reddit.com

—Competitive-Ear-6443

2. "If anyone has an idea of what this is, please tell me."

Zututuc / Via reddit.com

—Zututuc

3. "School lunch in West Virginia."

TheActualSwanKing / Via reddit.com

—TheActualSwanKing

4. "Plastic in my school lunch burger. 🤤"

Doorknob_Licker2 / Via reddit.com

—Doorknob_Licker2

5. "School lunches in America are a joke."

Dramatic_Gamer05 / Via reddit.com

—Dramatic_Gamer05

6. "The highest quality I have ever seen."

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—deleted

7. "School lunch pizza."

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—OMGLMAOWTF_com

8. "No mayo, tomato, or lettuce in this wrap."

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—icie_plazma

9. "Happy Thanksgiving — here’s my school lunch. It’s called Turkey Dinner."

—R0OOo / Via reddit.com

—R0OOo

10. "Today's lunch is 'sushi' with frozen chicken tenders in the middle."

Healthy_Block3036 / Via reddit.com

—Healthy_Block3036

11. "Just a normal NYC school lunch."

AMuteCicada / Via reddit.com

—AMuteCicada

12. "My school lunch in Kentucky."

AMuteCicada / Via reddit.com

—AMuteCicada

13. "Mmm school lunch."

Visual-Educator8354 / Via reddit.com

—Visual-Educator8354

14. "Spaghetti sandwich. It tastes worse than it looks."

ARealHooman / Via reddit.com

—ARealHooman

15. "Some treasures from my school lunch last year."

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—sootless_

16. And finally, "Bro, this is my school lunch. 💀"

VarietyGame86 / Via reddit.com

—VarietyGame86