For many, school lunch is a race against the clock.

If kids had more time to sit down and eat, they might make healthier choices in the lunch line, including more fruit and wasting less food.

Healthier Choices

The Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics published a study that found longer lunch periods could lead to healthier choices made by students.

1,000 students from six elementary and middle schools took place in the study, led by researchers from the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.

Researchers used what they call a plate waste study to track kids' consumption of school lunch.

Waste And Consumption

School children who had less than 20 minutes to eat also consumed less of their food -- 12.8 percent less of their entrees, 11.8 less of their vegetables, and 10.3 less of their milk.

Those who had 25 minutes to eat were more likely to pick a fruit with their lunch as well -- 57 percent, as opposed to 44 percent for the kids with less time.

The researchers noted that 30 million students are currently receiving discounted or free lunch and rely on school lunch for a bulk of their nutrition.

Read More:

• Longer Lunch Periods Mean Fuller Students (New York Times)
• Could longer school lunch periods encourage healthy eating? (Medical News Today)
• More time for school lunches equals healthier choices for kids (Science Daily)