The United States have been facing a problem of obesity for quite some time now. And no matter how far we dig into this problem, we will find many reasons for the cause. In today’s society, politicians are inclined to take this issue serious because it is now affecting our children on a large scale. According to the United States Department of Health and Human Services, 1 in 3 adolescents between the ages of 6 and 19 are overweight. Many believe this to be a problem of poor eating habits and in some cases the lack of healthy eating options. In the documentary Food Inc. it mentions schools choosing healthy lunch options provided by local farming. In this paper I will evaluate how Wisconsin public schools have adopted programs that will bring local farmers into the school to teach and provide local healthy option for meals, and how these programs will benefit both the school and the farmer.
The Wisconsin Department of Agriculture, Trade and Consumer Protection (DATCP) joined with AmeriCorps in 2008 to launch a regional program called the Farm to School Program. This program secured funding, which supports organizations and farmers to serve their community to produce and education. The goal of this program is to provide an innovative approach to decreasing childhood obesity by promoting healthy eating habits in students. The program also strives to increase access to local food in schools and the community. With one of the longest running farmers markets in the nation, Madison Wisconsin is a great place to see how local farmers can impact the school and community. On last Saturday I attended the farmers market on the square downtown Madison, and I asked two farmers if there were any programs that bring their services in...
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...?." Journal of School Health 82.5 (2012): 210-216. Academic Search Complete. Web. 22 May 2014.
(1)This source is an academic journal of school health published May 2012. (2) The Journal examines which states are more inclined to have farm to school programs. (3) The major point of this article is to identify the states that have farming laws and the states that have farm to school programs. (4) According the Schneider, “Given that children spend the majority of their day at school, the school environment plays a fundamental role in shaping lifelong healthy behaviors.” (5) Linda Schneider is a senior research scientist at the University of Chicago and with this being a peer reviewed journal I find it to be credible. (6) This source was used to evaluate published information about the state of Wisconsin and the fundamental roles schools play in childhood health.
This documentary takes a look at how our school’s lunch programs and government play a role in the spread of obesity across the nation. The film really attempts to drive home the idea that our children are being immorally brainwashed into wanting unhealthy foods. At some points of the film, it appears that the director uses big companies and school lunches as a scapegoat for our nations crisis. It is a valid point that our nation’s children are being
Did you know that today, 2.1 billion people – nearly 30% of the world's population – are either obese or overweight because they ate unhealthy food and didn’t exercise? After reading the Omnivore’s Dilemma by Michael Pollan, I have learned about all the opportunities right here in Rochester that have to do with eating more local food. We should eat more local food because it is healthier for us and it helps the environment.
Shapiro, E.S. (2011). Saving the future: Response to intervention may be on solution that prevents a child’s ailing academic health. Theory to Practice: An Inquisitive Review of Contemporary Education & Health, 3, 14-19.
Obesity in the United States, which the media has labeled a national crisis, has also been connected to poverty rates. Big fast food industry’s target poor communities, and spend millions of dollars each year to create advertising that appeals to these specific areas. These industry’s also target naïve children when advertising because they know that eating habits developed in childhood are usually carried into adulthood. Children who are exposed to television advertisements for unhealthy food and who are not educated well enough on good nutrition will grow up and feed their families the same unhealthy foods they ate as kids. A big way fast food giants are able to make certain young people have access to unhealthy food is by strategically placing franchises in close proximity to schools. They will often place three times as many outlets within walking distance of schools than in areas where there are no schools nearby. The way fast food advertising is targeted towards children is very alarming considering how important good nutrition is for young people and how a child’s eating habits can affect their growth and
In just two and a half decades the rate of obesity in the United States has more than tripled. In 1985 less than ten percent of Americans were obese. As of July 2011, 33.8 percent of adults and 17 percent of children are obese ( Center for Desase Control). This is a disturbing trend that is being directly influenced by the use of agricultural subsidies. Many notable politicians, journalists, economists, and nutritionists have argued that the removal of agricultural subsidies would be a good first step to fighting the obesity epidemic because they make fattening foods cheap and abundant (Alston, Rickard and Okrent). The act of paying farmers to overproduce has also changed the demographic that is obese. Before the industrial revolutions food was far too expensive to be able to afford enough to become obese. Being overweight was both a luxury and a symbol of one’s wealth. Today obesity has become b...
...). A future research idea piggybacks on this program by encouraging an initiation of state and/or national legislation, specifically for change moving towards healthier school nutrition and additional school nutrition education. This legislation would also mandate increases in the amount of time children are allowed for physical activity in their school day as a lack of physical activity is a huge risk factor for overweight and obesity. Another thought is to designate a school health coordinator who will be responsible for maintaining and continuing the positive work that this study began. Utilizing the success of this program and others like it in this regards will lead to action on all levels of the social ecological framework. Ultimately, a multilevel examination of determinants and interventions needs to be aimed at preventing child overweight and obesity.
Government date shows that in the past thirty years, rate of being overweight in six to eleven year olds is up 19% and 6% in age 12 to 19. Without support, school lunches remain high in fat. (Finkelstien) According to the CDCP, obesity is double what it was in children and triple in adolescents since 1980. Many reforms were attempted to help this problem, but many inadvertently caused more problems. (Finkelstien) A 730 calorie lunch should have no more than 24 grams of fat and no more than 8 grams of it saturated yet the average USDA lunch has 31 grams of fat and 14 rams of it is saturated. (Yeoman) These very high levels of fat are why obesity is becoming worse in children. It can be concluded that school food is still extremely high in fat and this can be directly linked to the high rates of obesity in young children and
This campaign, launched by First Lady Michelle Obama, is aimed to solve the challenge of obesity in this generation’s children (“Let’s Move”). This campaign targets, not just the families, but also schools and communities to improve the environment for children to strive and become healthier. Starting with the family, the program discusses the important fact that children will eat better if they are surrounded by healthier food. Having the parents modeling good behavior and eating the healthier food influences the children and they too will eat the healthier food. They also include tips for how to eat healthier such as mixing vegetables into dishes, substituting fat-free milk or water instead of soda or other sweeter beverages, and substituting desserts for fruit, saving the “treats” for special occasions. In addition, eating as a family is seen to help with obesity because it creates structure in eating and decreases the snacking children have throughout the day (“Let’s Move”). In regards to school, by having the children participate in the National School Lunch Program, as well as the School Breakfast Program, the children are able to have a nutritious meal at a reduced cost or even free. Having options, such as a salad bar, and multiple options for children to choose from that are not just healthy but also delicious, will also help children see that eating healthy is not as atrocious as they perceived. Lastly, with the community in mind, the program, along with the U.S. Departments of Treasury, Agriculture, and Health and Human Services, is providing financing to develop grocery stores, farmers markets and corner stores capable of supplying and selling healthy food in underserved communities to eliminate food deserts. Many markets are even participating in WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) and the
According to the American Heart Association, 23.9 million children ages 2 to 19 are overweight or obese. In addition to them, 154.7 million adults are pudgy. That means more than one-third of children and two-thirds of adults in the United States are overweight (Pages 1-3). Many Americans know about the high rates of obesity in our country. Michelle Obama, along with several other politicians and health professionals, push for recognition of these facts. They believe too many citizens are overweight and something has to change. The statistics raise several questions and problems, but of these conflicts, which ones are worth solving?
“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.
This initiative seeks to reach youth in all areas of their environment. Children spend a great deal of time in school. The CDC made schools the focus of its work. Each year the CDC releases a report called the School Health Policies and Practices Study. This study measures what health-related courses are taught in school and the components of the courses, and the effectiveness of nutritional and health policies. The most recent data compiled by the School Health Policies and Practices Study (SHPPS) suggests that the nation’s school are doing a better job educating school- age children in the areas of alcohol and drug prevention, emotional and mental, infectious disease prevention and strategies to prevent suicide and violence (CDC,
Obesity in the United States continues growing alarmingly. Approximately 66 % of adults and 33 % of children and teenagers in the US are overweight. Obesity is the result of fat accumulated over time due to the lack of a balanced diet and exercise. An adult with a BMI (body mass index) higher than thirty percent is considered obese (Whitney & Rolfes, 2011, pg. 271).
As an average American student walks down the lunch line they might see whole-grain bread or noodles being tossed on their plate. “Who would want to eat this?” A common question asked by the student when they encounter the reduced calorie meal. Believe it or not, the changes, no matter how unappetizing they may be, were made in interest of the health children across the nation. After her husband was elected President of the United States, Michelle Obama took initiative of her own and started a campaign called “Let’s Move!” The campaign was developed to put a stop to childhood obesity through exercise and nutrition. Besides endorsing exercise to the children of America through commercials and advertisements, this movement included new guidelines that schools across the nation had to follow. This caused controversy between the students and schools and the government that will be covered throughout the essay. This paper is about Michelle Obama’s school lunch guidelines and how they are affecting schools and students across the nation.
Nonetheless, we spend billions of dollars on health care, treating obesity conditions rather than actually treating obesity. In Michelle Obama remarks to the NAACP National Convention (2010) she proposes a program called “Let’s Move” a program to encourage and educate for better eating, one of her plans is to “get more kids to participate in daily physical education classes” (Graff 426). If this proposal becomes true it would help children understand their bodies and the benefits of taking care of it. Besides, if we leave them to exercise at school they may love it and practice it during their leisure time. Mrs. Obama continues this proposal by stating that “all families [should] have access to fresh, affordable food in their residential districts where they exist” (Graff 427). In urban communities you rarely see a Food4Less, Smart&Final, Ralph, Trader Joes, or even a Fresh&Easy; yet there are Fast-Food companies on every corner. “Drive down any thoroughfare in America, and I guarantee you’ll see one of our country’s more than 13,000 McDonald’s restaurants. Now, drive back up the block and try to find someplace to buy a grapefruit” (Zinczenko 392). If there is an increase in Super Markets, there will be more home cook meals and eating of fruits and
Scherr, R. E., Cox, R. J., Feenstra, G., & Zidenberg-Cherr, S. (2013). Integrating local agriculture into nutrition programs can benefit children's health. California Agriculture, 67(1), 30-37. doi:10.3733/ca.v067n01p30