Federal Initiatives Target Child Nutrition

States and school districts have tried to promote healthier foods and distribute them to more students, but the possibility of national nutrition reform may be starting to show some real teeth.

Between a push to reauthorize the 64-year-old federal school meals program and a new anti-obesity campaign headed by the first lady , the Obama administration is proposing changes that stretch across both the U.S. Departments of Education and Agriculture and tackle everything from vending-machine sweets to parents who don’t encourage children to play outside.

If successful, those efforts—which would involve the White House and both federal agencies—could affect not only the government’s role in promoting healthy lifestyles among children, but also how agencies work across departmental boundaries...