While stories and reports about the expanding girth of Americans – kids, adolescents, adults and even the nation’s pet cats and dogs – are depressingly commonplace these days, the news is not all grim on the fat front. There is increasing evidence, as well, that the ongoing battle against unhealthy eating habits and the flab and health problems that result is producing positive results. Supporting evidence is readily available in many school cafeterias in the area and across the country.
School lunches, for example, are demonstrably healthier than they were a decade ago. Foods served to youngsters today contain far less sodium, fat and cholesterol than those once provided. That’s a positive step in what has been called America’s modern “Battle of the Bulge.” Even so, it’s far too early to claim anything but a minor victory.
Despite the progress, many kids remain overweight and an increasing number are dangerously obese. That is a pattern repeated in the general population, and the reason that public and private agencies and organizations continue to trumpet the dangers of being overweight at a young age and to press the fight for good nutrition.
Schools remain an important front in the battle, though not the only one. It is there that advocates of a healthy diet and lifestyle run headlong into the overwhelming influence and power of the snack food industry. To be sure, the confrontation is not as obvious as it once was. Soft drinks, candy, fatty snack foods and sugar-laden juices once were almost ubiquitous in schools, widely available in strategically placed vending machines. That’s no longer the case.
Many school districts, including those here, have made determined efforts to reduce the availability of the machines and fatty and sugary snacks that contribute to the obesity epidemic. They’ve been successful in many instances.
In many places, it’s now nearly impossible to buy a soft drink or a bagged snack at lunchtime, especially in elementary schools. And at middle and high schools where vending machines are more common, they frequently are stocked with healthier snacks like granola bars or real juices instead of more sugary or fatty offerings. In addition, access to the machines often is limited at mealtime. That is undeniable progress in an effort that has broad implications to the nation’s current and future health.
More should be done. The goal should be a total ban on the sale of soft drinks and sugary and fatty snack foods in schools. Unfortunately, that’s unlikely to happen any time soon. Too many schools still depend on the revenue the snack vending machines generate to pay expenses not covered by appropriations.
The effort should be expanded. Doing so will produce tangible results in both the short and the long term. The benefits will be measured in lost weight and in improved overall health for today’s schoolchildren in the years and decades to come.