School Lunch Improvements

Look for healthier school lunches in the near future! I am truly excited about this initiative. I know if my son starts eating unhealthy food at school he is going to beg for it at home too. And if I try to make him take cold lunch everyday he will freak out. So I am thrilled to hear school lunches will be healthier soon! I called the food services person at my son's school yesterday to find out more about hot lunch. My son will have the option to take it for the first time next year.

For instance, when the menu says "Grilled Cheese" does that mean white bread with butter and American cheese? Or whole wheat bread with cheddar and butter spray? At my son's school it will mean wheat bread (not 100%) , American cheese and butter spray. The food services supervisor says this year all she could get was white bread so she is excited to offer wheat bread next year. She is also switching to skim milk or 1% instead of 2% milk. She said the school offers fresh fruit and vegetables most of the time. Sometimes the veggies are canned. She said the school has never fried anything and the breaded items do contain whole grains. She said the biggest problem is sodium in processed food. The White House's new initiative should force food manufacturers to limit the sodium in processed foods.

FROM NBC: A White House task force is tackling childhood obesity - and says it's a problem that can be solved. Nearly one in three American children are now considered overweight or obese. The task force has a seventy-point plan to get the government, businesses - and American families - working together to help children get fit and stay that way. The first lady presented the plan, but says this isn't something Washington can do alone.

Can America's Childhood obesity epidemic be wiped out in a single generation? A White House task force led by First Lady Michelle Obama says 'yes' and has come up with a battle plan. Michelle Obama: "No one gets off the hook on this one -- from governments to schools, corporations to nonprofits, all the way down to families sitting around their dinner table."

The report ordered by President Obama outlines dozens of steps: At home: better food more exercise less time in front the tube. In neighborhoods: eradicating so-called food deserts -where supermarkets and healthy food are hard to find. and at school: healthier menus-which won't be cheap. Diane Pratt-Heavner : School Nutrition Association: "Fruits, vegetables, whole grains are more expensive - and schools need those additional funds to make those improvements."

The president is asking congress for a billion dollars to expand school breakfast and lunch programs. A cause that drew celebrity chef Rachel Ray to Washington. Rachael Ray:Celebrity Chef "You know if the summer comes and goes, and we don't get this done, it's a whole other year our kids have to wait." From Washington, a call to action for this nation's future. While fixing the problem will take some serious investments, the White House estimates obesity related health care costs this country 150 billion dollars a year.

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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Is School Lunch Bad?

How often do your kids eat hot lunch at school? I don't know what I am going to do when my little ones get in school. I can't imagine packing a lunch everyday, but my mom did it. So, I feel like I can too. I would hope the lunches served at schools now aren't as bad for kids as when I was in school, but this story from CNN makes me think otherwise.

CNN: As schools start across the country, a debate is underway regarding what your kids eat for lunch. Processed meats - specifically those cured by nitrites - like most hot dogs and ham - are the center of the debate.

They've been a staple of school lunches for decades, hot dogs, pepperoni pizza, ham, but now there are increasing calls for schools to drop processed meats from your child's menu. The reason? Not the obesity epidemic, it's nitrites that some studies have linked to cancer. Dr. Walter Willett is Chair of the Department of Nutrition at the Harvard School of Public Health. "If you care about the health of your child, you don't want your child eating processed meats for lunch at home or at school. The American Cancer Society says "eating processed meats increases exposure to potential cancer causing agents and should be reduced as much as possible."

The American Institute for Cancer Research says simply: "Avoid processed meat." But not everyone agrees. Randy Huffman is President of the American Meat Institute Foundation, an industry-sponsored advocacy group. He's taken his case right to today's version of the public square: YouTube. "If you like cured meats that contain sodium nitrite, you should eat them with confidence." Huffman, points out: "There are studies showing a link between cancer and processed meat, but there are also studies that do not show a link. The science is not certain on this issue. There's still a lot of questions."

Hufman says many foods, like spinach, or pomegranates naturally contain nitrites. A liter of pomegranate juice contributes about 100 times more nitrite than a hot dog. We put that to Dr. Willett: "In my book that's just plain baloney." Willett, and many other experts, say nitrites are fine in fruits and vegetables and are only a problem when combined with protein like in meat.

The meat industry disagrees. "This is, what you're referring to is an old theory. We showed that Youtube video to several experts and they said they found it misleading. I don't know who your experts were but you're not talking to the right ones."

So while the experts debate processed meats won't be disappearing from school lunch menus any time soon. So what about processed meats in school lunches? We spoke with officials from the School Nutrition Association, which represents school dietitians around the country. It says the science behind the calls to eliminate processed meats from schools is far from conclusive.

What kind of lunch does your child's school provide? How often to pack a sack lunch?

Copy and paste this link so you can email the story to friends! NewsAnchorMom on School Lunch

Click here to take our HOI 19 Poll: Do your kids eat hot lunch at school?

-NewsAnchorMom Jen

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