Is this an example of why people are so upset?

[pspstatus]

I think this is a classic example of how this country has basically become an oligarchy. Give the kids healthier foods? Not if it takes money out of corporate Americas pockets.

http://www.foxnews.com/health/2011/1...ol-lunch-bill/

[theonedru]

Americans do so love being fat and unhealthy. The fact they have garbage on kids lunch menu's shows how much they really do not care about a kids future.

[mrveggieman]

With cell phones, video games, digital cable, unlimited internet access, and the cutting of programs such as phyical education and high school sports why not continue to feed our kids a bunch of unhealth garbage that is worse than what they serve at mcdonalds. It's no coincidence why we have a generation of fat, lazy out of shape kids who don't want anything out of life.

[duane1969]

I would ask but one thing. That everyone who is about to vote on school lunch menus should first have to eat nothing but school lunches for a month.

Our county has already enacted most of what that article talks about.
*Burgers and hotdogs are served on whole wheat buns. Toast for breakfast is also whole wheat.
*A lunch that includes a burger/hotdog and fries includes ONE packet of ketchup for everything because of the sodium in ketchup
*Salt is banned from the tables and barely used in the cooking process (think of french fries with no salt and practically no ketchup)
*Deep-frying is out. Everything that used to get deep-fried now gets baked. (now think of crunchy french fries with no salt and little ketchup)
*Steamed/boiled vegetables or salad are on every lunch tray

So a kid goes thru line, gets his hotdog, fries, steamed vegetables and a half of an apple. Anybody want to guess how much of it he eats versus how much of it he throws away?

Now we have a hungry kid in the classroom. Anybody want to guess if he is focused on learning or focused on his empty growling stomach?

[mrveggieman]

I would ask but one thing. That everyone who is about to vote on school lunch menus should first have to eat nothing but school lunches for a month.

Our county has already enacted most of what that article talks about.
*Burgers and hotdogs are served on whole wheat buns. Toast for breakfast is also whole wheat.
*A lunch that includes a burger/hotdog and fries includes ONE packet of ketchup for everything because of the sodium in ketchup
*Salt is banned from the tables and barely used in the cooking process (think of french fries with no salt and practically no ketchup)
*Deep-frying is out. Everything that used to get deep-fried now gets baked. (now think of crunchy french fries with no salt and little ketchup)
*Steamed/boiled vegetables or salad are on every lunch tray

So a kid goes thru line, gets his hotdog, fries, steamed vegetables and a half of an apple. Anybody want to guess how much of it he eats versus how much of it he throws away?

Now we have a hungry kid in the classroom. Anybody want to guess if he is focused on learning or focused on his empty growling stomach?

That's a good point and part of the blame goes to the parents for not teaching their child about health eating and to not waste food. Also if the child makes a choice to throw away food and sit around hungry for the rest of the afternoon he shares part of the blame too.

[duane1969]

That's a good point and part of the blame goes to the parents for not teaching their child about health eating and to not waste food. Also if the child makes a choice to throw away food and sit around hungry for the rest of the afternoon he shares part of the blame too.

I don't know if you have kids, but any parent knows that children will not eat whole wheat, steamed vegetables and saltless food. In fact, most adults won't either.

And expecting a child to make life impacting decisions is illogical. Until puberty (and sometimes later) children are egocentric. They can not see anything outside of their own wants and needs. It is a part of the development of their brain. It can not be legislated or voted on. Given the chance a child will always choose what taste good over what is good for them because it satisfies the egocentric mentality that they have.

Even teaching them doesn't impact this. From infancy we always pushed healthy eating to our kids. Snacks were grapes, apples, celery with peanutbutter, etc. To this day they request grapes when we are making a grocery list and usually eat several pounds of them per week. But if you put a chocolate cake beside a bag of grapes and apple slices my kids will choose the cake everytime. That is kids.

[mrveggieman]

I don't know if you have kids, but any parent knows that children will not eat whole wheat, steamed vegetables and saltless food. In fact, most adults won't either.

And expecting a child to make life impacting decisions is illogical. Until puberty (and sometimes later) children are egocentric. They can not see anything outside of their own wants and needs. It is a part of the development of their brain. It can not be legislated or voted on. Given the chance a child will always choose what taste good over what is good for them because it satisfies the egocentric mentality that they have.

Even teaching them doesn't impact this. From infancy we always pushed healthy eating to our kids. Snacks were grapes, apples, celery with peanutbutter, etc. To this day they request grapes when we are making a grocery list and usually eat several pounds of them per week. But if you put a chocolate cake beside a bag of grapes and apple slices my kids will choose the cake everytime. That is kids.

In my house my wife stopped buying juices, soda and other sugery drinks. The only thing to drink is water unless you want to waste the milk that you have for cereal or use your own money to go to the corner store to get a soda. I understand that the kids may still get sodas or juice when they are out but we are starting to plant the seeds of health eating in them.

[duane1969]

In my house my wife stopped buying juices, soda and other sugery drinks. The only thing to drink is water unless you want to waste the milk that you have for cereal or use your own money to go to the corner store to get a soda. I understand that the kids may still get sodas or juice when they are out but we are starting to plant the seeds of health eating in them.

Planting the seeds is fine and I agree with it. But reality is reality.

Try this experiement for me and let me know how it goes.

Take your kids in the grocery store (not the health food one either), give them $5 each and tell them that they can buy ANYTHING that thery want to eat or drink. Make it clear that today is their "free choice" day and that they can have whatever they desire and will not get in trouble or be reprimanded for their choice. Do nothing to influence their decision. Let me know what they buy.

If they choose healthy foods over candy, cakes and sugar drinks I will send you PayPal gift and refund the money they spent.

[mrveggieman]

Planting the seeds is fine and I agree with it. But reality is reality.

Try this experiement for me and let me know how it goes.

Take your kids in the grocery store (not the health food one either), give them $5 each and tell them that they can buy ANYTHING that thery want to eat or drink. Make it clear that today is their "free choice" day and that they can have whatever they desire and will not get in trouble or be reprimanded for their choice. Do nothing to influence their decision. Let me know what they buy.

If they choose healthy foods over candy, cakes and sugar drinks I will send you PayPal gift and refund the money they spent.

Nice try but we both know that is not going to happen if given the choice. Hell if someone gave me five dollars and told me that I could either get junk food or green peas I would chose the junk food. However your point of the child having a healthy lunch being served to him and him throwing his veggies away and only eating the hot dog/hamburger that is on him because food was offered to him and he chose not to eat it. It is just like when I go out of town to see my inlaws and the only food available is either meat or has been cooked with meat. I understand that food is available but I am the one making the conscience choice not to eat it.

[pspstatus]

I would ask but one thing. That everyone who is about to vote on school lunch menus should first have to eat nothing but school lunches for a month.

Our county has already enacted most of what that article talks about.
*Burgers and hotdogs are served on whole wheat buns. Toast for breakfast is also whole wheat.
*A lunch that includes a burger/hotdog and fries includes ONE packet of ketchup for everything because of the sodium in ketchup
*Salt is banned from the tables and barely used in the cooking process (think of french fries with no salt and practically no ketchup)
*Deep-frying is out. Everything that used to get deep-fried now gets baked. (now think of crunchy french fries with no salt and little ketchup)
*Steamed/boiled vegetables or salad are on every lunch tray

So a kid goes thru line, gets his hotdog, fries, steamed vegetables and a half of an apple. Anybody want to guess how much of it he eats versus how much of it he throws away?

Now we have a hungry kid in the classroom. Anybody want to guess if he is focused on learning or focused on his empty growling stomach?

Kids are less likely to eat healthier foods for lunch which could certainly lead to problems in the classroom. But I think that most kids would still eat. That's a different debate though.

The thing I wanted to point out was that this bill would significantly roll back the changes you listed above. Even more than that though is why they are being rolled back. It's not because kids may eat less and be hungry during class. It's because these changes damaged profits for certain industries. They lobbied congress and now a small amount of frozen processed tomato paste is considered a vegetable again.

It seems to me to be a good example of how things work in this country. An effort is being made to do something that would benefit many kids. Unfortunately that doesn't work for some in the corporate world. And of course they have the ear of Congress that they whisper their influence into and boom!, kids are eating huge amounts of salt while
execs pocket huge amounts of profit. As it should be. The government works for the big guy not the little guy.