Tag Archive for: Kids Act

Better School Lunches

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Just about every day, more school districts are opting out of the U.S. National School Lunch Program—some because they don’t want the government to tell them what to do, most to save money because school districts are allowed to opt out if costs are too high. If you’re not familiar with this issue, read the messages in late December about the Kids Act.

One of the reasons some schools give is that kids won’t eat the required vegetables, fruits, and whole grains, creating more food waste. Judging by the combinations of foods some school cafeteria . . .

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The Bottom Line on School Lunches

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Healthier meals in schools were proposed and opposed—what happened next? True to form, the federal government gave in to the food industry. They didn’t reverse the Kids Act, but they left it to the school districts to decide whether a switch to whole grains caused any hardship. They also suspended the target for lower sodium levels until there’s more research. Pathetic.

Here’s what I think as a health educator: there was no training for staff or students on what constitutes healthy nutrition. In most school districts, food is made in one central kitchen and shipped to . . .

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Kids Act Opposition

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Yesterday, I told you about the Healthy Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010 with the objective of improving the choices of the food offerings in school lunches. But great ideas that were started two years ago may die before they really get going. School districts, food industry advocates, and a national school-lunch association (funded in part by the food industry) are seeking to change the Kids Act. They say that the new guidelines cost too much, there’s too much waste, and school lunch purchases have declined. They want the guidelines waived if a school loses money on their . . .

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Healthy Hunger-Free Kids

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There’s no easy way to say this so I’m just going to blurt it out: we’re raising a generation of overweight and obese children. They eat too much saturated fat, too much sodium, not enough vegetables, not enough fruit, and they’re way too sedentary. When Paula and I go out to eat, I can always predict what nearby children are going to order or what they’ll be eating: chicken nuggets or mac and cheese. I’m always right, but I wish I weren’t. I understand that it’s tough to be a parent who . . .

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