Invasion of the School Lunch Nazis!

Culture

Invasion of the School Lunch Nazis!

They say cafeterias are making Philly kids fat. I say: Really?

By Sandy Hingston 5/06/2010 Comments 12

Pity the poor Chicken Nugget Basket, Whole Kernel Corn, Fruit Jello, and other stalwarts of the school lunch menu. Everyone from Michelle Obama to Time magazine to the nation’s retired military leaders is tossing Tater Tots at school lunches for being at the (great big) bottom of America’s childhood obesity woes. Celeb chef Jamie Oliver even has a new TV show, Food Revolution, in which he tries to try to get the schoolkids of Huntington, West Virginia, to see the errors of their glaze. And the Inky slapped more, um, fat on the fire with a commentary this week by nutrition researcher Neal Barnard, the president of the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine, who’s pushing the Healthy School Meals Act in Congress, intended to put more fruits, veggies and whole grains on Junior’s current pizza/burger/fries-laden plate.

Well, the crap on Junior’s plate is downright wholesome compared to the lunch Nazis’ reasoning. Kids are in school for one meal out of three for 180 days a year. That means they eat 16 percent of their total annual meals there. So even if those meals are fat-filled, salt-encrusted horrors, they’re a minor part of a kid’s overall food intake. Wait, wait, the Nazis scream—what about modeling good nutrition for kids? Shouldn’t schools do that, since parents don’t seem willing or able? Where are these same people when we’re talking about sex education in schools, can you tell me?

Common sense says you can lay however many tofu stir-fries you like on that cafeteria tray; outside his eight hours in school, Junior’s gonna be bombarded by a world in which Burger King’s expanding into brunch, KFC’s latest sandwich features bacon and cheese nestled between two slabs of fried chicken, and Taco Bell thinks we need Fourth Meal, because the three we have just aren’t enough. Hell, the only place he’s safe from SuperSizing is at school.

Barnard writes that school lunches are “ground zero in the war against childhood obesity.” Uh-uh, Neil. Ground zero is the giant corporations that are more than willing to push Americans’ sorry-ass impulse control all the way to an early grave. The only reason everybody piles on the school lunch is because it’s something we have a shot at being able to change and control. The real differences won’t come until we hit those corporations where it hurts—not just with a sugar tax, but with salt and fat and cholesterol taxes, too. And while we’re at it, let’s outlaw the drive-thru. If I’ve got to have that Angus Bacon & Cheese burger, at least make me walk to the counter for it.

SANDY HINGSTON is a Philly Mag senior editor.

RELATED:

Most Popular Today

Paul deon Says:
May 6th, 2010 at 12:33 pm

What about a tax on lack of personal accountablity? Your argument does not make sense. It is ok to eat burgers, fries and have a coke. It is about doing it in proportion and excercise. I think you need to rethink what you have written.

Steve Russ Says:
May 6th, 2010 at 12:47 pm

This sounds eerily like a smoker who is against people warning about the dangers of smoking. You aren’t a tad chuncky by any chance – are you?

Aren’t you the one who sympathized with the guy who shot people and then pulled the plug on himself a couple of weeks ago?

Your equally ridiculous argument today says that schools shouldn’t provide healthy means to children because they are surrounded by unhealthy meals at home and at play –so it doesn’t matter.

Of course it matters. Some kids will grasp the idea and importance of eating healthy and the price to pay if you do not. Something needs to be done. look at the condition of our kids. Look at the rate of childhood diabetes. Schools should not contribute to the problem. They should be part of the solution.

Maybe this is a case of “misery loves company” from your view. I don’t know. but you should be supporting there effort. Not dumping on them because –kids can eat poorly at other places.

I see it’s lunchtime. Enjoy your Fries.

N. Day Says:
May 6th, 2010 at 12:47 pm

My husband and I treat our two children (and ourselves) to McDonalds once a week. All four of us are in good shape and in good health. You know why? Because we pay attention to portion size and order healthier alternatives…no super-size and apples & milk in the happy meals, etc. And we eat healthy most of the time are are active and get lost of exercise. Everything, even junk food, can be enjoyed in moderation and when we take respsonibility for our own health. That is what we need to be modeling for our children…in schools and at home.

AR Says:
May 6th, 2010 at 1:17 pm

Of course, because we’ve been told that it takes a village… right? Parents are too busy to provide basic nutrition – basic care for their children. (Grab a pop-tart, slurp down some sugary blue yogurt and we’ll stop at the drive-through on our way to Jimmy’s ballgame.) But you say schools aren’t properly caring for our kids while we’re at work? Outrage. And now we need an act of congress to help us understand what should be common sense?

Sandi Says:
May 6th, 2010 at 1:33 pm

Allowing schools to pander to the generally unhealthy eating habits of our society is not the answer. Why should we throw up our hands and say to kids: “Oh well, everyone else is eating crap so here’s more of it …” We have to set an example and hope that, along with education about nutrition, at least part of the message sticks. Even though school lunch is a relatively small part of kids’ overall diets, they don’t need validation from an institution in a position to help change things, that eating this way is okay.

Jeff Says:
May 6th, 2010 at 1:52 pm

What are schools designed (or at least supposed) to do? Educate. What if you were to take your flawed reasoning one step further: Since kids are only in school for 8 hours a day and 180 days a year and most of the time out of school they sit around watching T.V. and playing video games, we might as well let them do it in school, too.

No matter what you think of the nation’s schools, it is basically the only place where a kid is likely to receive any structured education. If we opt out of including nutrition as part of that structured education we are committing a gross disservice to our children.

First, a tacit support of road rage, now a acquiescence towards juvenile obesity. What’s next? Distress over a friend having a conversation with a garbage man? Oh wait, wrong ‘journalist’.

Mary Says:
May 6th, 2010 at 2:01 pm

So your first point is that lunch is only 16% of kids’ annual food intake, so What’s the big deal about some greasy chicken nuggets?

And then your second point is that they’ll be bombarded by fast food all the rest of the day anyway, so lunch at school is the only place kids are safe from greasy chicken nuggets.

Huh.

You certainly make an excellent circular argument of confusion.

George Says:
May 6th, 2010 at 2:02 pm

You’re preaching is ignorant. The only legitimate point you make is that obviously we have an epidemic of obesity linked to unhealthy eating and lack of moderation, especially when looking at fast food options…but the starting point is, and always should be, kids. We must ALWAYS look at the children of our society and make sure they are living healthy lives because they don’t have the same self-regulation, responsibility and wisdom that adults have. Therefore, the best place to start IS school lunches. You can’t argue that they only eat one meal a day at school because a lot of kids eat 2 meals a day. And if their meals are full of processed crap (which is the main point Jamie Oliver makes) then they are not getting adequate nutrients for their growing bodies, and will start developing obesity and an early onset of Diabetes type II which we are currently seeing. We don’t have to turn them all into vegetarians, just need FRESH foods and meals in MODERATION. There’s only so much we can do about how parents feed their kids right now, but the least we can do is regulate the food that we, the schools and government, feed the children.

brian Says:
May 6th, 2010 at 3:52 pm

Baby steps Sandy-baby steps. What complex problem can be tackled in a single step? Those same corporations you rail against have lobbied hard over many years to place soda and candy machines, as well as processed foods into school cafeterias. Why? Because they know if you get kids hooked early you’ll have customers for life.

Do you really think that cigarette taxes led to a decrease in smoking in the US? Nope. It was largely due to an unceasing education campaign aimed at kids. Unfortunately it is was only partially effective. But that’s better than nothing.

Neal D. Barnard, MD Says:
May 6th, 2010 at 9:52 pm

Many children now eat both breakfast and lunch at school, making it the best and easiest place to turn the tide on the obesity epidemic. While schools do the best they can, they clearly need help.

Congress is now considering a bill, HR 4870, the Healthy School Meals Act, that would reward schools that provide healthy plant-based meals, such as veggie burgers, bean burritos, and veggie chili. It is totally voluntary for schools. But the result will certainly be lower cholesterol levels and healthier children.

Readers who would like to support this initiative should call their member of Congress at 202-224-3121.

Connie Says:
May 6th, 2010 at 10:01 pm

I drive kids to school and home every day. One of the kids complained that he was starving and I asked why. He told me that the so-called “healthy food kick” at his cafeteria meant they served foods he hated! The multigrain bread made him gag, and the “hamburger” was the soy type. He was turned off and did not eat. He couldn’t wait to get home to make some real buttered popcorn. Now where’s the wisdom in all this? If you want kids to eat healthy, make stuff they’ll eat!

Jim2903 Says:
May 7th, 2010 at 11:27 am

Your column is right on. And Neil Barnard is a quack and a shill for anti-meat radicals whose aim is to end the consumption of all animal proteins.

1.	America? Pennsylvania Here. We Know Rick Santorum. You Don't.

2.	Jackass Star Bam Margera Arrested at Mardi Gras

3.	Grocery Shopping in Philadelphia: The Whole Foods Problem

4.	No Philadelphia Catholic School Is Safe

5.	Who's Ready to Tweet Lindsay Lohan's Funeral? #SoSad

Sign in