A Response

In response to the 11/23 "Fat Kids" entry, Monica writes:

There was a McDonalds one block away from my high school, and a Taco Bell not too much farther. At my middle school, the ice cream man would park himself right in front of the school once class let out.

I doubt many of my classmates needed a parent's transportation to procure unhealthy food on a daily basis. Especially with the crap they sold at the schools themselves.

In my opinion, the advertising is not the biggest issue here--the availability of bad food and the lack of sufficient health/nutritional education is the real culprit (from the parents and the school). Because, in reality, the parents aren't the ones decision makers, the kids are. When faced with the dorky school lunch, or the cool-kids'-a-la-carte menu items, kids are free to make their own fatty choices. I would venture to say that most parents are unaware that their kids are spending their "lunch money" on pizza and curly fries.

In most schools, or public schools at the very least, there are almost NO healthy options when it comes to the food schools provide. Probably the only way to ensure a healthy diet would be to bring your lunch everyday--and who wants to do that? Who has the time? For me, a kid who went to a public school that had no lockers, and had to carry my huge college-sized textbooks around with me everyday, carrying an adequate lunch was not an option.

Yes, the parents should be responsible, but there's only so much they can do (and should do--I mean forcing a bag lunch onto a high school kid is just asking for therapy later on). The schools need to act responsibly too, but it's especially hard in these times of enormous budget cuts in education. I know money's tight, but isn't the health of our nation important too?

I just thought it was so well-written, I had to share. Thanks, Monica!