School Lunches Essay -- Social Issues, Childhood Obesity

School Lunches â€Å"More than a third of the county's children are overweight or obese.†(Gustin, 1). As shocking as this is, it's true. One of the big reasons that children and teens are overweight is because of the foods that they eat. They are fed these fattening and unhealthy foods by the school system. Their futures can be changed if we change our choices. Having more nutritious lunches can have a positive impact on the health of American teens. â€Å"More than 76 percent of schools sell soft drinks and sweetened fruit drinks, but fewer than half offered bottles water. Fewer than 15 percent sell low-fat or nonfat yogurt, and fewer than one third order skim milk. Only 25 percent of schools say they've reduced fats and oils in recipes.†(Spake, 2). Choices at lunch range from greasy to unidentifiable. Most students eat school lunches five days a week. So most of the food they eat throughout the week comes from the school cafeteria. Although, the schools do tend to offer healthy choices such as salads, subs, skim milk, and unlimited fruits and vegetables. â€Å"Each week Phoenix students are served a variety of fruits and vegetables from guava to grapes and jicima to red peppers. School officials hope that by exposing children to fruits and vegetable they may develop a taste for them and request their parents to buy them.†(Bailey, 1). Real meat is becoming an issue in schools. â€Å"According to reports issued b y the Physicians Committee for responsible Medicine (PCRM) the USDA dumps hundreds of millions of pounds of surplus beef, chicken, cheese, and pork on the National School lunch Program.†(Lord, 42). Chicken isn't whole white meat; some of it doesn't even taste like meat! Let’s move on to unhealthy foods. There are unlimited amounts of un... ...ars of school. Once kids eat their lunches they normally want to go run around and use some of that energy from the food so they can concentrate better in class. It is also a good thing to require because school gym is the only exercise most teens and children get throughout the day. It helps cut the growing rate of diabetes and obesity. Sports are also a good way to stay active and healthy. Not only are you constantly moving and getting tons of exercise, but sports teams normally offer a good healthy snack after games such as peanut butter crackers and juice boxes or nutrition bars and bottled water. It all makes a huge difference in the development of children and teens. If we take these small steps to change, we can easily redirect the lives of children and teens health. Having more nutritious lunches can have a positive impact on the health of American teens.