By Kara Pifer
For most parents, the school day starts with dropping off their child in front of the school and ends with picking them up, with little thought is given to what happens in between. There are lessons, worksheets, recess and of course a nice healthy lunch in the school cafeteria. You trust your child’s school to make all the right choices for them. What parent does not want what is best for their child? If you tuned in to the show Food Revolution with Jamie Oliver last spring, you may already know that your child is unfortunately not always getting the best options when it comes to eating a healthy lunch. (If you do not know who Jamie Oliver is, the link to his inspiring Ted Talk is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jIwrV5e6fMY and I recommend watching it even if you do know him! He is not registered as a Dietitian but he is so passionate about food and making the school food system better for the coming generations.) The Food Revolution was my guilty pleasure once I discovered it last year, and I’m sure that the new season will continue to distract me from my schoolwork! Due to this show being nationally televised as well as many other sources and activists springing into action, there has been an increased knowledge of what is happening in school lunchrooms – showing parents exactly how bad this food is. Packed lunches are not even that much better, as Jamie Oliver displayed throughout the first season of the show. They include processed cheese and sandwich crackers, candy and snack packs of cookies. Very rarely was a baggie of carrots found, or even an apple. Since the airing of this show, many adults have become more involved with what their kids are eating for lunch and now, even school districts are making drastic changes in order to keep up with the changing times.
In the Tampa Bay area in Florida, many parents are beginning to feel better about what their kids put on their trays while away from mom’s watchful eye. Already in effect at the schools in this area include using low-fat or nonfat milk, and serving more fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Their current battle involves reducing sodium in the school meals. They plan on decreasing the amount of sodium in school foods over the next ten years, until the amounts found in their foods have been cut in half! The article found in a Tampa Bay newspaper gives examples of current sodium levels in their foods as well as their goals for ten years from now. One specific example is a “ham, egg and cheese biscuit….which packs 1,792 milligrams of sodium.” This is definitely very high for proposed goals set in place by the USDA guidelines of a maximum of 434 to 495 milligrams of sodium contained in school breakfasts. Those 1,792 milligrams is what many kids across the nation are starting their day with. And how likely is it that they just munch on carrot sticks and an apple throughout the rest of the day? Most likely, they are also eating sodium packed school lunch as well as a normal dinner and snacks at home. On top of this, many teenagers spend time with their friends after school. This hangout place may be at a fast food restaurant, or eating chips and salsa while watching their favorite television show. This all adds up to an amazingly high level of sodium taken in throughout the day, which may lead to an increased chance of developing hypertension later in life or a number of other health issues.
An example of a lunch currently found in the Tampa Bay school district is the classic grilled cheese and tomato soup, which I am sure is offered all over the country. The comforting classic at this particular school contains 1,309 milligrams of sodium even after changing to a reduced sodium slice of American cheese. This is also greatly higher than the proposed changes by the USDA, which is a maximum of 636 to 736 milligrams of sodium in school lunches. Although it will be difficult to make these adjustments at first, I believe that companies will begin to offer more choices that fit into these standards as more schools make purchasing changes. To start, choosing to purchase more frozen vegetables may prove to be beneficial. Now, by vegetables, I do not mean French fries, I mean frozen broccoli, frozen carrots or frozen cauliflower. Plain frozen vegetables (without any sauce or seasonings) are usually very reasonably priced. These would be beneficial for children because it is putting more fiber and vitamins into their diet while subtracting the fat and carbohydrates that would be found in the other foods that would normally be served. Continuing to use low sodium products is another way to cut back on sodium, at least until companies produce healthier and more affordable options for schools to purchase. Once more companies offer more lower sodium choices, I believe it will become easier and less expensive for schools to stay within their proposed budgets and even more importantly, keep the next generation as healthy as possible.
In addition to school districts making healthy changes on an individual basis, National organizations such as the FDA and USDA are also making proposals to change current school food standards. Currently, a rule being proposed by the USDA includes increasing “the availability of fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and fat – free and low – fat fluid milk in school meals; reduce the levels of sodium and saturated fat in meals; and help meet the nutrition needs of school children within their calorie requirements.” A more specific overview includes lowering saturated fat consumption by keeping it >7% of the total calories consumed as well as a lower sodium consumption, keeping those levels below 1500 mg per day. One part of the proposed rule that really caught my eye was the description of adding “a new red/orange vegetable subgroup.” How difficult is this really? Offer a small baggie of carrots, or add tomatoes to sandwiches or salads. Maybe because I am such a vegetable lover this proposed rule just seems too obvious. I assume that the main reason that this is currently being proposed revolves around cost and budgeting for schools. As shown in the Food Revolution, schools choose to purchase processed, fatty foods due to the cost and the need to stay within the budget. As can be seen with any trip to the supermarket, fresh fruits and vegetables are much more expensive than boxes of pastas, which may limit some schools on a tight budget. Throughout the show, Jamie Oliver tried to show the school officials that there are healthier options for the children that are still within budget. Although they are not always the best option available, they are still healthy and much better for the kids in the long run. Also, Oliver emphasized how using local farms for available and affordable produce is a spectacular idea. This helps the local economy while making school lunches more focused on fresh foods that are locally grown. In addition, these foods are usually much more affordable since there is no shipping cost attached to the price like what you would find in a supermarket. The rule was proposed by the USDA on January 13, 2011 and is an attempt to align what children are eating today with the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans and hopefully it will take effect to help improve standards for school food.
Although these are only a few bits and pieces about the overhaul of school nutrition currently underway, information can be found almost everywhere. Thanks to Michelle Obama’s involvement in this topic with promoting home grown gardens and working with childhood obesity programs, many movements and organizations have been created or discovered to help with improving nutrition for children. The main goal of all of these programs is to improve children’s health over the course of the next few years in order to prepare them for a much longer and healthier life. Many changes have already occurred in school districts thanks to involved and concerned parents and many proposals are on Capitol Hill awaiting a decision that may affect all school districts in the nation. The proposals are currently aimed at removing all saturated and trans fats from the school system, reducing sodium, increasing vegetables and fruits available and decreasing the fat content of foods that are readily available for children of all ages. Although currently we are considered one of the fattest countries in the world, these small changes may add up to a lighter and healthier America.
To read the mentioned proposal by the USDA:
To read about the Tampa Bay schools:
To read about the second season of Food Revolution: http://www.monstersandcritics.com/smallscreen/news/article_1610760.php/Jamie-Oliver-kicks-off-the-Food-Revolution-in-Los-Angeles
To read the mentioned proposal by the USDA: http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/governance/regulations/2011-01-13.pdf
To read about the Tampa Bay schools:
http://www.tampabay.com/news/health/school-lunch-proposal-aims-to-cut-salt-and-calories/1145350
To read about the second season of Food Revolution: http://www.monstersandcritics.com/smallscreen/news/article_1610760.php/Jamie-Oliver-kicks-off-the-Food-Revolution-in-Los-Angeles
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