It is 8:30am. Outside Junior Laboratory High School in Dhaka’s Dhanmondi area, the usual morning rush is already underway. Some parents hurriedly drop off their children at the school gate, while others adjust school bags and offer last-minute instructions. Even before the bell rings, the surroundings are filled with movement, noise, and a sense of urgency.
Shortly after classes begin, it is time for tiffin. In a classroom of third-grade students, lunch boxes are opened, and different aromas fill the room. Some children are eating rice and lentils, while others have roti and eggs, sandwiches, or noodles. A number of students, however, are eating biscuits, chips, or chanachur purchased from shops outside the school.
At first glance, it may appear to be an ordinary school lunch scene. Yet among children of the same age and in the same class, these differences reflect starkly different social and nutritional realities.
Public health experts say this everyday scene reveals a deeper picture of children's eating habits, nutritional gaps, and social inequality—one that is gradually emerging as a major public health concern.
Child nutrition remains a serious issue in Bangladesh. According to recent UNICEF data, around 28% of children under the age of five suffer from stunting, a consequence of long-term malnutrition.
Around 10% experience wasting, a form of acute malnutrition that hampers healthy weight gain and development.
At the same time, another challenge is emerging in urban areas, where between 2% and 6% of children are overweight or obese.
In other words, Bangladesh is facing the "double burden of malnutrition"—undernutrition and overnutrition occurring simultaneously.
The situation becomes even clearer when dietary habits are examined. A UNICEF report shows that more than two-thirds of children in Bangladesh do not receive a sufficiently diverse diet, with many relying on only one or two types of food each day.
This condition is referred to as "child food poverty," where children fail to consume foods from at least five essential food groups.
A significant part of the problem is linked to school tiffin or midday meals. Bangladesh has no unified national standard for school lunches. In some areas, there is no organized meal system at all. Elsewhere, limited government- or development project-supported feeding initiatives exist, while most children bring food from home. However, these meals are not always nutritionally balanced.
As a result, vastly different food realities can be observed within the same classroom. Some children bring nutritious homemade meals, others eat only plain rice or roti, while some depend on readily available fast food sold outside schools.
The widespread presence of mobile food vendors around schools has further complicated the situation. Chips, chanachur, fried snacks, and soft drinks are easily accessible, and many children prefer them to home-cooked meals because of their low cost, convenience, and appealing taste.
Doctors warn that such foods contain high levels of salt, sugar, and trans fats, which can have long-term adverse effects on children's health.
Tahmina Akter, a teacher at the school, said: "Many children come to school without breakfast and buy cheap fried snacks during tiffin time."
She added that food brought from home is not always nutritious, while food purchased outside is often unhealthy.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), children aged between six and 12 require approximately 1,600 to 2,200 kilocalories per day, depending on their age and activity level. They also need adequate amounts of protein, calcium, iron, and other essential micronutrients.
In reality, however, many children's diets lack this balance. Even when calorie requirements are met, nutritional quality is often poor, affecting long-term physical and cognitive development.
Child specialist Dr Md Fazlul Haq said, "School age is a crucial period for physical and mental growth. If children do not receive adequate protein, vitamins, and minerals at this stage, it can affect their growth, learning ability, and immunity."
He added that nutritional deficiencies reduce concentration, weaken learning capacity, and may contribute to behavioral problems. Food habits directly influence classroom attention, social interaction, and interest in learning.
Globally, school feeding programs are considered an effective tool for improving child nutrition and increasing school participation.
In India, one of the world's largest mid-day meal programs provides cooked meals in government schools, typically consisting of rice or roti, lentils, vegetables, and, in some cases, eggs or milk.
In Japan, the school lunch system, known as kyūshoku, is an integral part of education. Meals are carefully planned under the supervision of nutritionists and are accompanied by food education.
In Sweden and other Nordic countries, including Norway and Finland, all students receive free, nutritionally balanced meals.
In the United States, the National School Lunch Program follows fixed nutritional standards, while school meals in the United Kingdom are regulated under School Food Standards.
According to the World Food Programme (WFP), school meal programmes increase student attendance by around 9% to 12%, particularly in vulnerable and low-income communities.
The World Bank has found that effective school feeding programmes can increase enrolment by 10% to 20% and significantly reduce dropout rates.
Analyses by UNICEF and WFP also indicate that school meal programmes in low- and middle-income countries can raise overall student attendance by as much as 20% by reducing nutrition-related absenteeism, thereby improving learning outcomes.
In Bangladesh, the school feeding programme has been operating since 2001 under the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education in collaboration with the World Food Programme. Initially, children received fortified biscuits. Later, hot meals such as khichuri, eggs, lentils, and vegetables were introduced in selected areas. The programme has expanded and contracted over time, depending on project cycles.
It is currently undergoing another phase of restructuring and expansion, covering approximately 104 to 150 upazilas in stages.
However, UNICEF and other organisations note that the programme has yet to achieve nationwide coverage, resulting in significant regional disparities in nutrition and food support for children.
AKM Rezaul Karim, assistant project director of the School Feeding Programme at the Directorate of Primary Education, said: "The government plans to gradually expand the school feeding programme. The goal is not only to increase attendance but also to ensure basic nutrition for children and improve the learning environment."
He added that the initiative would play an important role in improving the quality of education and is expected to eventually cover all primary schools across the country.
Anisatul Fatema Yousuf, coordinator of the Citizen's Platform for SDGs, Bangladesh, said the issue should not be viewed solely as an individual or family responsibility. Instead, it requires an integrated policy approach.
She said: "Schools, families, and the state must work together. This includes regulating the food environment around schools, introducing nutrition education, promoting local food systems, strengthening monitoring mechanisms, and recognising school feeding as an integral part of education policy. Without such multi-sectoral efforts, it will not be possible to reduce nutritional inequality among children or mitigate future risks to human capital."
