The research was undertaken by the Institute for Social and Economic Research (ISER) from Essex University, and were unveiled at the Royal Economic Society's annual conference. The independent study showed that the performance of 11 year old pupils who had been eating Jamie Oliver's school meals improved in science and English, while absentism due to ill health also dropped by 15%.
The study was based on pupils who sat exams in 2006-2007 who had been on the diet for at least twelve months prior. The researchers found the number of pupils reaching levels four or five had risen by 8% in science, and 6% in English. There was also a slight improvement in maths results.
Jamie Oliver's campaign for a healthier school lunch, called Feed Me Better Campaign, begun in Greenwich, London, in 2004.
Jamie, said "It strongly suggests that we were right all along".
The head teacher from Kidbrooke Secondary School, the first school to test Jamie Oliver's menu said " The children aren't being stuffed with additives, they're much less hyper in the afternoons now."
During the Feed Me Better Campaign, Jamie hired nutritionists, who found that most school lunches contained less than half the daily recommended amount of iron, which is known to be important in children's development and concentration.
Jamie Oliver's new school lunch menus have been adopted by over 90% of the schools in Greenwich, London. The schools have banned processed foods and introduced iron rich foods, pulses, green vegetables and red meat.
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