Removing Junk Food from Schools
Carrie Seather, Maria Cisneros
The issue of junk food in schools is being widely debated. School districts all over the country are looking at the amount of unhealthy food they are providing to their students. The districts are trying to decide how to take junk food out of the schools with- out losing funds from vending machines and candy sales. Junk food has been defined as, food with more than 40% added sugar, juice with less than 35% real juice, and items with 8 grams of fat or more per serving, (except seeds and nuts). Vending machines with candy, fried chips and soda are widely accessible to students throughout the school day. Cafeteria breakfast and lunch programs leave much to be desired in terms of healthy food. As the obesity rate increases among children we are forced to ask the question: What can we do, as educators, to help decrease the obesity rate of our children?”
Omitting the junk food from schools will set a standard of good health and show students that educators care about what they are eating. By eliminating soda, fried chips and candy from campuses, schools are making a pro-active choice to increase the health of its students. Over fifteen percent of American children are clinically obese. Obesity increases the chance of developing diseases like, Diabetes, heart disease, and high blood pressure just to name a few. The decreased amount of junk food in schools will help children to focus and concentrate better. Teachers have noticed that students go up on a sugar high and then come crashing down. Taking junk food off the campuses will contribute to better health for the students and increase the children’s capacity to focus and grasp the material.
The downside to removing candy sales and junk food vending machines is that schools would lose a lot of funds that come from these sources. Fund raisers are essential to the extracurricular activities in our schools. Candy sales and vending machines provide the majority of funds for sports, clubs, equipment, supplies, activities and even coaches salaries. Large soda corporations like Pepsi and Coke give money to the schools as incentive for having their machines on campus. Taking vending machines out of the schools and not allowing clubs to sell candy on school property will have a detrimental effect on those programs. Extracurricular activities are already struggling to stay afloat and the loss of funds could eliminate the programs.
We as educators have a choice to make. Do we ignore the childhood obesity rate and future health problems in our children by allowing junk food to be sold on campus? In doing so, maintaining the extracurricular activities that are so important to a well rounded education? Or, do we eliminate junk food sales on campus and see our important activities decline due to lack of funds?
We have come to the conclusion that schools should not provide junk food to students. Schools need to upgrade the quality of food that is served in the breakfast and lunch programs. This would encourage students to eat the food that is provided. Removing vending machines would be detrimental to activity funds so schools should replace the junk food with healthier alternatives. Healthier alternatives such as 100% juice, V8 and water should replace the soda. Rice Krispy Treats, Goldfish, peanuts and Chex Mix should replace vending machine items. Clubs need to stop selling candy on campus and find other fund raising alternatives. Giving students healthier choices will encourage good health and prove to our children that we, as educators, truly care about what is best for them.
Graphic retrieved from: Print Shop Pro 6.0
Author:
Carrie Seather
Last modified:
4/29/2006 5:20 AM (EST)
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