January Post

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Should Schools Ban Unhealthy Food products

    New schools laws in the US suggest banning any food products that do not meet certain food regulations from being distributed. By doing this, the government hopes to solve many of America's child obesity problems. They believe that because children spend most of their time at school, that is where the problem originates. They also believe that's where it can be solved. However, the new regulations seem to be too strict. Any food products with sugar as the first ingredient on the list is immediately eliminated. Treats whose amounts of fat or calories that reach past a certain limit are prohibited. Schools shouldn't ban junk food because doing so could cause financial issues, not all unhealthy food exposed to children come from schools, and won’t help students make healthy decisions.

    First, preparing school lunches that meet these food regulations has proven to be expensive. Sandra Ford states in Mary Clare's article, New Rules Make School a Junk Food-Free Zone, "The new meal pattern requirements have significantly increased the expense of preparing school meals." She predicted that because of these health regulations, her school district could lose up to $975,000. Most lunchrooms have the "a la carte" lines that sell other food, often unhealthy, but favored by the students. The new regulations would knock out most of the items in these lines, causing both financial and support problems. If these new laws were to be put into full action, we would find more problems than solutions.

   Secondly, most of the unhealthy food children are exposed to don't come from school, but outside sources. In many areas, schools have already banned drinks with high sugar content. According to Scholastic's article, Should Schools Ban Soda, "Regardless of the [new rules], students still purchased sugar-sweetened drinks outside of school. The study found that about 85 percent of students reported consuming sugary beverages at least once a week."  The bans against sugary drinks had no effect on the student's unhealthy diet. They found a new source and continued to be unhealthy. If the new laws were to be put into place, we would get a similar result.

   Finally, restricting access to unhealthy foods won't teach students how to make healthy choices. Limiting what students are allowed to eat at school won’t teach them the importance of good health, but will simply force them to find a new source to the food they love. John Dively stated in his scholastic news article, Should States Ban Junk Food In Schools, “An across-the-board junk-food ban does not teach young people how to make healthy choices; it simply removes some of their options.” He also stated that “improving what we teach about nutrition and requiring more physical activity,” would be a better way to solve this issue. If we don’t teach children the importance of good health and physical fitness, they won’t understand the reason behind banning junk food.

    While banning unhealthy foods from schools might solve some obesity issues, it leaves everyone else feeling punished for the choices of their peers. Studies show that 18 percent of American children are considered obese. In order to help these children, 82 percent of Americans are forced to go along with the laws, even though they don’t need to.  We need to look at the situation from all perspectives before we make any moves.

    In conclusion, banning unhealthy food from schools won’t make a positive influence because doing so could cause financial issues, not all unhealthy food given to children come from schools, and won’t help students make healthy decisions. If we want to help the ever-growing problem of child obesity, we to focus on  teaching students how to make healthy choices and how to remain physically active.