8 replies on “Soda out of schools.”

  1. Getting rid of 20 ounce sodas is a great step in the right direction, but diet sodas are sometimes much, much worse for you than non-diet. So I hope this is the beginning of a gradual progression and not one of those slap-on solutions that look good but change little.

  2. I think there are bigger problems than getting rid of sodas in schools. While I certainly think it is a good idea to get rid of them from elementary and middle schools (high schoolers should be responsible enough to decide whether they should have soda or not), I find it more troubling that some schools are eliminating recess and/or gym programs. Where are the foundations working on fixing this problem?

  3. Well, sure, there are bigger problems than just about any problem you or I can think of. But in the scale o’ things, this is a pretty important one. President Clinton has been working quite hard in convincing schools to retain recess and gym, as has the American Heart Foundation.

  4. I agree with Cory. No soda of any kind should be made available to kids. Those machines are a nice way for the schools to make a little money at the expense of the kids’ teeth and health. Even fruit juices are full of sugar, but at least they have the slight chance of providing some nutrients, assuming those have not been totally processed out.

    The food choices available to children in most public schools is atrocious. They get the lowest quality of everything and most of it is junk food. What great eating habits we are teaching our kids! When I think about what we are doing the to future health of our children by feeding them this stuff, I just cringe. Of course, walking into Kroger’s or Giant and seeing what stuff they call edible food makes me sad too.

    The whole public school system, from the ground up, needs to be revamped to properly educate our children on so many levels, but that is a whole ‘nother rant.

  5. Thanks for posting this, Waldo! Yesterday was definitely a good day. And believe me, we all recognize that the drink issue is only one part of a much larger and very complex issue. Still, victories in this effort are few and far between, so we take them where we can get them.

    (P.S. It’s the American Heart Association, which I know you know, but I take my plugs whereever I can get them, too. *g*)

  6. I think soda is an important issue in schools. I remember the soda junkies (when they didn’t have change they’d pay me a dollar for 50 cents) when I was in high school. People tend to think about how harmful the copious amounts of sugar are to our bodies, but there is very little attention given to its effects on adolescent and teen minds. Sugar can do a lot more than make a kid hyper. It can have a pretty interesting effect on their emotional balance. In most people it is subtle, so I’m not trying to imply that it’s solution (don’t believe in cure-alls with human nature) to teen violence or any other major problem. It’s just a factor overlooked. People wonder why there are such high rates of ADHD in high school. Have you ever seen what 20 ounces of Mountain Dew can do to a 120lb. youth that has not had a substantially nutritious meal in six hours?

  7. Certainly excessive sugar is a problem for kids, but there is also the issue that many of today’s kids are not very active. They spend a lot of time in front of the TV and computer and almost none outside. Physical activity can help to burn off a lot of those excess calories. It definitely became apparent to me in the last six years. After the tenth grade, we stopped taking gym at my school. Some students definitely put on weight in that period of time. Then college starts. Certainly the bad diet hurts here, but many students never walk to class or do anything physical, instead choosing to take the bus everywhere. A good amount of exercise goes far, and can more than make up for that can of Coca-Cola.

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