London, Feb 4 : The school meals started by celebrity chef Jamie Oliver has shown to be responsible for the pupils getting better exam results, a new study has revealed.

Researchers found that children who follow the healthy diet were less likely to stay away from school, and that absenteeism also fell by
15 per cent.

The study also found that 11-year-olds, who have been on the diet for 12 months, improved by eight per cent in science and six per cent in English at Key Stage 2.

"The results are fantastic and suggest we were right all along," the Mirror quoted Oliver as saying.

"We could see the benefits to children''s health straight away," he added.

Oliver, 33, has helped schools in Greenwich, South London, do away with cheap, high-fat meals for nutritious school dinners swapping Turkey Twizzlers for fish, coconut and broccoli.

Researchers at Essex University compared their results with thousands of other pupils in the region, and found that the improvement was due to the dietary changes. (ANI)