May 14, 2007
It's Time for Better Nutrition in Our Schools
More and more children today are overweight or obese and have early diabetes or heart disease. And yet, our schools still sell candy bars, sugary drinks, and salty snacks. Obviously, there's a lot wrong with this situation. And there's a lot at stake if we fail to change it. Experts predict that the current generation of young people could be the first to live shorter and less healthy lives than their parents.
One key to reversing this catastrophic course is to require healthier foods and beverages in our public schools. Nutrition standards should apply not only to the cafeteria, but also to vending machines and school stores. Now, we have comprehensive, rigorous, science-based recommendations for improving the nutrition of foods sold outside of the National School Lunch Program.
In late April, the Institute of Medicine, one of America's most distinguished scientific bodies, issued gold-standard recommendations. And, as it turns out, the Institute of Medicine's recommendations are mostly just common sense: We should help students eat more fruits, vegetables, and whole grains, and eat fewer foods high in fat, sodium, and calories.
These recommendations increase the momentum behind bipartisan legislation that Senator Lisa Murkowski (R-AK) and I have introduced, the Child Nutrition Promotion and School Lunch Protection Act. Our bill would require the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) to update its antiquated nutrition guidelines and apply them everywhere on school grounds.
Currently, USDA's nutrition guidelines apply only to the school cafeteria during mealtime. This means that kids need only walk outside of the cafeteria in order to purchase soft drinks, chips, and candy bars. This is a junk-food loophole big enough to drive a soda pop delivery truck through.
It's time to close this loophole. Taxpayers spend $10 billion a year on healthy school meals - they should know that investment is not being wasted or undermined.
There have been some efforts around the country to voluntarily get junk food out of our schools. I applaud those efforts. But so far, they've been inconsistent and have failed to improve the nutrition of all the kids who need it. I believe that the health of our children is so important that we should seek national guidelines that protect all of our children.
I applaud the Institute of Medicine for giving us scientific clarity about how best to increase nutrition in our schools. Now it is our job to do the right thing for America's children. We must start by taking legislative action to stop the rising tide of poor nutrition and obesity in our country, especially among those who need protection the most: our children.