5 things: Lockdowns may have caused diabetes surge among kids, study finds

In this edition of 5 Things, Food Management highlights five things you may have missed recently about developments affecting onsite dining.

Here’s your list for today:

Rates and severity of Type 2 diabetes among U.S. children rose during the COVID-19 pandemic, possibly due to weight gain during lockdowns, researchers say. "While our study examined hospital admissions for Type 2 diabetes in children at one center, the results may be a microcosm of what is happening at other children's hospitals across the country," said the study’s lead author, Dr. Daniel Hsia, an associate professor in the clinical trials unit at Pennington Biomedical Research Center in Baton Rouge, La..

Read more: Lockdown weight may have caused surge in diabetes cases in kids

A little more than half (51%) of all knowledge workers—defined as those who are involved in knowledge-intensive occupations, such as writers, accountants and engineers—worldwide are expected to be working remotely by the end of this year, up from the 27% doing so in 2019, according to the Gartner research firm. The company also estimates that remote workers will represent 32% of all employees worldwide by the end of 2021, up dramatically from 17% in 2019, and that the U.S. will lead the world in terms of the percentage of remote workers in its workforce in 2022, accounting for 53% of the total.

Related:Hospital nutrition workers create signature meals based on their heritage

Read more: Gartner: 51% of global knowledge workers will be remote by the end of 2021

Beginning June 28, five area restaurants will rotate each weekday in a vacant space in the first-floor food court at the Reitz Union at the University of Florida (UF) as part of a new concept called Local Restaurant Row developed by campus dining services provider Aramark to boost local businesses while giving students more menu diversity. The restaurants will be responsible for food and staffing, while UF will provide warming equipment and prep space, along with marketing promotions.

Read more: Local Restaurant Row pairs University of Florida campus with favorite area establishments

School-age children ate more fruits and vegetables when they had longer to sit at the lunch table, according to a study published recently by JAMA Open Network. The children ages 8-14 participating at an Illinois summer camp ate 84.2% of the fruits and 65.3% of the vegetables served to them when they were required to sit at the table for 20 minutes, versus 72.9% and 51.2%, respectively, among those who were required to stay seated for just 10 minutes.

Related:One On One With: Canteen expands automated meal service with Le Bread Xpress deal

Read more: Can't Get Schoolkids to Eat a Decent Lunch? Keep Them at the Table

Locally noted Antone's Famous Po' Boys has closed its brick-and-mortar location at the Texas Medical Center in Houston and will only make its sandwiches available to personnel and visitors of Texas Children's and other hospitals and medical office buildings in the area through its delivery and catering program. The move apparently is yet another indication of a trend toward less in-person style platforms in the foodservice world.

Read more: Antone’s closes its brick-and-mortar location in the Texas Medical Center

Bonus: NACUFS announces Loyal Horton winners

Contact Mike Buzalka at [email protected]