School Foods experiment

I'd like to first say this is not a bash on schools. The grammar and spelling is probably off but I feel like I need to vent. I know schools get blamed for almost everything now days and has their work load increase every time an issue comes up. I have been working at a school for three weeks now doing a dietetic internship. I have to say the lunches suck.

The problem does not lie in the school but in the whole process of the state and federal lunch system. If you read through all the regulations and budgets and other various guidelines of sorts your left with wondering "what can you feed these kids". Not only are you forced to feed kids foods they like because if you don't your reimbursement will drop. But you also have to consider nutrition guidelines and commodities. It is almost to the point where the school cannot do anything even if they wanted to. Or perhaps the government wants a finger to point for the lack of nutrition in children.

There are some wonderful programs out there that help schools to promote a healthy lifestyle to kids. No offense to these programs, but they are bandaide approaches to the main problem. The system needs to understand that each school is different and needs to be treated as so. There are kids with allergies, kitchen limitations, and more factors that go into planning for a school menu. Guidelines are useful to the schools but when french fries are considered vegetables you have to wonder how much knowledge does the government really have about school food service.

There are so many outside influences to these kids you cannot baby them anymore. Yes let them have a pizza every once in a while. Yes let them have a choice in what they eat. But also provide them with options of good healthy foods! If this is a child's only meal of the day ensure they know that the school cares enough to provide them with vitamins and mineral and not just calories. Also allow the schools to provide these healthy foods. How are kids suppose to know there is a wide spectrum of foods out there if all they receive is the frozen processed foods. Kids are brainwashed into thinking that these types of foods are what taste good. They refuse to eat foods that are of superior quality and taste becuase they are "different" or "new". I say start with the little ones and brainwash them into thinking that healthy foods taste good. Don't give them an option of junk food in schools. Just think they can get it else where. Then educate the older ones to make healthy choices.

I have yet to know if the school has asked the students or parents what they would like to know about nutrition. If they have asked what should they provide for the health of the students. Chances are the parents and students do know a lot about nutrition. What they need is a kick in the butt to start the healthy lifestyle process.

I guess my experiment would have to wait. But its a thought until then.