Schools and Childhood Obesity

When it comes to nutrition, is it only the students who notice a disconnect between what’s preached in the classroom and what’s all too often on display in school corridors and lunchrooms?

In some schools, any true awareness of the serious health issues which excesses of fat-saturated, salty and sugary foods can bring into the future lives of tomorrow’s adults seemingly goes no further than the rote lessons taught in health classes.  Schools themselves are often less than helpful in promoting proper nutrition, or standing in the breach against junk food consumption on-campus.  Parents concerned about child nutrition are often therefore short a key ally in their struggle to instill good, lifelong nutrition habits in their children.

The epidemic of childhood obesity and the myriad illnesses which so often accompany it have been more steadfastly confronted in Britain.  Under guidelines put forth by British government regulators in 2007,  television advertising of unhealthy foods is forbidden during the hours most favored by young viewers.  The ban has elicited opposition, of course, from snack food producers and others — but in the end, sound public health concerns won out.

Any such debate here in the United States would raise worthy issues such as that of over-regulation and the roles of education and self-responsibility in consumer choice.

However — shouldn’t our schools bear a special responsibility to come down decidedly on the side of healthy outcomes with regard to the children whose care they are entrusted with?  Shouldn’t the considerable amount of time young people spend under educators’ care be hours in which prudent nutritional choices are reinforced, rather than undermined?  Is there in fact any legitimate reason for excessively fatty, salty or sugary snacks to be sold in school lunch lines or school vending machines, when healthy alternatives are so readily available in the marketplace?

The real wonder is why parents haven’t demanded healthy changes in the nutritional environment surrounding their school-age children!

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