Georgia Bubash, like so many school-aged children, really hated the cafeteria lunches when she was a student at Pittsburgh Liberty elementary. About the only things the Shadyside youngster would ever allow herself to eat, in fact -- and only if she was really, really, really hungry -- were the school's galaxy pizza and tacos.

"It was just kind of gross," Georgia, now 10, remembers. "Everything was really greasy and not very healthy." Even the chicken nuggets, she notes with a disgusted shudder, had little pieces of fat in them.

Yet the brown-bag lunches her mother, Cathleen, packed each day as an alternative weren't much better. Unbeknownst to her mom, those countless peanut butter-and-jelly sandwiches usually ended up in the trash.

		Think inside the box Lots of kids who brown-bag it at lunchtime carry their lunches in just that -- brown paper bags. Yet if you're sending perishable foods to school, such as a sandwich with meat or tuna or a container of yogurt, it's probably a good idea to buy an insulated lunch box and an ice pack. Happily, there are more choices than ever when it comes to lunch boxes, so even the pickiest kid should have no trouble finding one that fits his or her style. At Lunchboxes.com, for instance, you'll find dozens of plastic, metal and soft boxes featuring everything from Barbie and Superman to dirt bike king Jeremy McGrath and Ozzy Osborne. They also have boxes shaped like soccer balls, baseballs and basketballs. Older girls, meanwhile, will love their chic purse-like totes (its pink striped "Fashion" lunch box tote, at $14.95, even comes with a mirror on the side). If your child likes to doodle, Zookies.net makes an insulated box that features a chalkboard on one side (chalk and a sponge are included in a small zip pouch). At Reusablebags.com, green-minded lunchers can choose from products made of organic cotton, neoprene and even recycled plastic bottles and foil juice boxes. Also gaining in popularity are bento-style containers. These Asian-style lunch boxes, available at sites like TheBentoStore.com and Laptoplunches.com, feature individual compartments into which fruit slices can be separated from cut-up pieces of sandwich or cheese, or hot items from cold. -- Gretchen McKay

Then last year, Georgia switched to Falk School in Oakland, a laboratory school operated by the University of Pittsburgh's School of Education. Unhappy with the quality of the hot meals Sodexho had been providing, the school the year before had revamped its menu to make the food healthier and tastier. As a result, Georgia -- like most of her classmates -- was delighted with the new choices.

"All of a sudden, she was telling me what she was eating for lunch, and how good it was," recalls Mrs. Bubash, a judge in the Family Division of Common Pleas Court. Not only that, but her daughter actually was holding up the school menu as an example of what the family should eat at home. Among the dishes she quickly came to love: Falk's whole-wheat crust pizza, fresh fruit smoothies, even vegetarian sushi!

Now in fifth grade, Georgia also is eating more apples, oranges and pears, thanks to the school's innovative fresh fruit promotion. Each day, a parent or teacher volunteers to cut fruit into slices as the children pass through the cafeteria line; occasionally, parents also will juggle whole oranges or throw out trivia questions in an attempt to get them interested and excited about fruit.

"It's the human interaction," says teacher Lori Wertz, who chairs Falk's lunch committee. "If you feel like someone's sliced it just for you, you're more likely to take it."

Kids, of course, have been complaining about school lunches for as long as there have been school cafeterias. What parent hasn't been regaled with tales about how the chicken nuggets bounce and the hamburgers aren't really hamburger at all but some kind of mystery meat? And for a long time, the criticism probably was warranted. Faced with the challenge of serving hundreds of kids at a time and the high labor cost of cooking foods from scratch, many schools were forced to serve preservative-filled, frozen foods that lack the nutrition and flavor in fresh meats and vegetables.

Just as bad was the fact that schools also allowed everything from chips and candy to cookies and sugary drinks to be sold during lunch, either as a la carte items on the cafeteria line or via a vending machine.

But luckily, that's starting to change.

Three years ago, Congress passed a law requiring schools that participate in the National School Lunch or School Breakfast program to adopt wellness policies aimed at promoting more exercise and healthier eating. For example, total fat is limited to 30 percent or less of total calories and saturated fat can only account for 10 percent. The new regulations also limit sugar to less than 35 percent of calories by weight. Accordingly, most schools have revamped their cafeteria menus.

With rising concerns about childhood obesity, some would contend the change is long overdue: According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, obesity rates have more than doubled among children and tripled among adolescents since 1980. A few might even argue that these new regulations don't go far enough. Susan Rubin and Amy Kalafa, for instance, were so incensed by the amount of highly processed, sugary junk foods being served on school property that they partnered to make "Two Angry Moms," a 90-minute documentary due out later this fall that aims to recruit two million moms to fight for healthy school lunches (www.angrymoms.org). Their impassioned plea for change is echoed by Georgia teen Chandler Converse, who this May testified before Congress about the importance of healthier lunches and exercise in schools.

Locally, the Pine-Richland School District is among those that have switched to whole-grain rolls and pizza crusts and eliminated traditional French fries (today's version is oven-baked, and even those aren't allowed every day). The district also now offers a wider variety of seasonal fresh fruits and vegetables, including raw vegetables served as side dishes, and at the high school occasionally serves brown rice instead of white. In addition, all lunch meat is turkey.

The district has also hung posters in the lunchroom that reinforce the importance of eating healthy foods and exercise.

The most noticeable change may be dessert. This year, some students may have been sad to learn that the cafeteria eliminated the 2 1/2-ounce "Big Cookie" in favor of a 1-ounce, low-fat cookie.

The changes make for a healthier lunch, of course. But it hasn't happened without its challenges. If you want kids to eat, notes food services director Cherry Cerminara, you have to offer them things they like and are familiar with. Hence, the menu still includes the occasional nachos with cheese, though that is balanced out later in the week with something more nutritional.

With all the added fruits and vegetables, notes Ms. Cerminara, it's sometimes difficult to meet the calories manadated by the government (654 at the elementary and 825 at the high school). So they occasionally have to throw in a small bag of chips (baked, of course).

Plum School District likewise has added a lot of whole-grain items to its menu and now only offers skim and one-percent milk, along with reduced-fat ice cream and burgers. Plum also uses a trans-fat free frying oil at the high school for French fries (the lower grades get only baked fries). Even more progressive, says food services director Maryann Lazzaro, was the decision to replace both mayonnaise and ranch salad dressing with one made with a fat substitute.

In 2006, Plum became the first school district in the country to pilot Z Trim, an all-natural, zero-calorie fat replacer made from the hulls of corn, oats, soy, rice and barley.

The switch also is on in the Mt. Lebanon School District, where chicken nuggets are made with a whole-wheat breading and flavored waters are offered. The hot dogs and taco meat are made from turkey, though "we don't specifically tell the kids that, because if they think it's too healthy, they'll also think it won't taste good," says assistant food director Judy Wolfe.

The high school, meanwhile, offers a variety of salads and made-to-order wrap sandwiches, all served with unlimited fruits and vegetables. Choices include turkey, grilled chicken and low-fat ham, with different vegetable toppings.

Administrators are so sure students will enjoy all the choices that they gave sixth-graders at Mellon and Jefferson middle schools a "free lunch" coupon to help welcome the new year.

Parents can help educate their kids on how to choose a healthy lunch and how that will make them feel better. Sit down with a menu and talk about healthy choices. But remember, you want to empower them, not make it a power struggle, says registered dietician and cookbook author Evelyn Tribole.

Tell them to indulge in fried foods and cheeseburgers only occasionally. If they choose the salad bar, Cooking Light's registered dietician Kathy Kitchens suggests they go for as many colors as possible to ensure a variety of vitamins, minerals and antioxidants. Be judicious with cheese, croutons and salad dressings, as they add calories and fat, and pair the salad with whole-grain bread.

Since packed lunches can end up in a locker or backpack for hours -- and since busy parents may fill them with pre-packaged foods that are high in sugar, sodium and fat -- many food service directors would argue that a school lunch is a healthier alternative.

"Lunch has taken such a bad rap," says Ms. Lazzaro, who is a registered dietician. "But we're doing a good job. The people who work in food service are so committed, and follow so many guidelines. We're just an easy person to kick when the chips are down."

And let's be honest. School lunches account for only 16 percent of a child's yearly meals. So the real culprits in the childhood obesity crisis, she says, are portion sizes and a lack of exercise.