Does your cafeteria put America at risk?
Does your cafeteria put America at risk?
School lunches have been called many things, but a group of retired military officers is giving them a new label: national security threat.
That's not a reference to the mystery meat served up in the cafeteria line either. The retired officers are saying that school lunches have helped make the nation's young people so fat that fewer of them can meet the military's physical fitness standards, and recruitment is in jeopardy.
A new report being released Tuesday says more than 9 million young adults, or 27 percent of all Americans ages 17 to 24, are too overweight to join the military. Now, the officers are advocating for passage of a wide-ranging nutrition bill that aims to make the nation's school lunches healthier.
The military group says weight problems that have worsened over the past 15 years are now the leading medical reason that recruits are rejected.
"When over a quarter of young adults are too fat to fight, we need to take notice," Barnett said. He noted that national security in the year 2030 is "absolutely dependent" on reversing child obesity rates.
Recruitment isn't the only problem posed by obesity. According to the report, the government spends tens of millions of dollars every year to train replacements for service members discharged because of weight problems.
This isn't the first time the military has gotten involved in the debate over school lunches. During World War II, military leaders had the opposite problem, reporting that many recruits were rejected because of stunted growth and inadequate nutrition. After the war, military leaders pushed Congress to establish the national school lunch program so children would grow up healthier.
Today, the group is urging Congress to eliminate junk food and high-calorie beverages from schools, put more money into the school lunch program and develop new strategies that help children develop healthier habits.
The school lunch bill, currently awaiting a Senate vote, would establish healthier options for all foods in schools, including vending machine items. The legislation would spend $4.5 billion more over 10 years for nutrition programs.
The Army is already doing its part to catch the problem earlier, working with high schoolers and interested recruits to lose weight before they are eligible for service, says U.S. Army Recruiting Command's Mark Howell. He added that he had to lose 10 pounds himself before he joined the military.
"This is the future of our Army we are looking at when we talk about these 17- to 24-year-olds," Howell said. "The sad thing is a lot of them want to join but can't."
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- Posted on April 20, 2010
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That`s probably true. School lunches are really greasy and unhealthy, and they are full of fat. Sometimes they aren`t even cooked. Our fries are cold potatoes sliced.
Fattening Foods
“I guess I’ll have the fattening fries.”
People talk about what is in the school’s lunches all the time. They talk about how they are poisonous, and they put fake meat in the chicken. I don’t believe that they are poisonous or anything; the lunch ladies don’t want to get us all sick. The lunches just aren’t that appetizing.
Schools try to make their lunches healthier, but some schools don’t have a lot of money to purchase things to make healthy foods. People getting fat isn’t completely the cafeteria’s fault; people eat junk when they're depressed, bored, and hungry. Fruit and vegetables aren’t cheap, and it’s so much easier to get take out than to make a homemade dinner. If they lowered the prices of healthy foods and raised the price of the unhealthy food, I bet people would start to lose weight and it would be easier to join the military.
Fattening food
"I guess I'll have the fattening fries."
People talk about what is in the school's lunches all the time. They talk about how they are poisonous and that they put fake meat in the chicken. I don't believe that they are poisonous or anything, the lunch ladies don't want to get us all sick. The lunches just aren't that appetizing.
Schools try to make their lunches more healthy, but some schools don't have a lot of money to purchase things to make healthy foods. People getting fat isn't completely the cafeteria's fault; people eat junk when they're depressed, bored, and hungry. Fruit and veg tables aren't cheap, and it's so much easier to get take out than to make a homemade dinner. If they lowered the prices of healthy foods and raised the price of the unhealthy food, I bet people would start to lose weight and it would be easier to join the millitary.
I understand their reason, but my school has some pretty bad lunches,but they areas healthy as can be, and i hate them!!
I don't buy school lunches.
Our cafeteria does not really support the healthy lifestyle. Although they do have salads, but many people do not enjoy them. They are probably the worst salads I have ever eaten, so it makes it hard to make the right decision. The foods there are very greasy too.
I think in my opinion its comes down to choice, a school can put however much money they want to in the cafeteria but kids are going to choose what their going to put in thier bodies. Everyone wants to blame this or that fast food restuarant or kids being depressed leads them to become obese and unhealthy but in all reality its the kids choice
Myself I do have many names for our cafeteria food. None of them are good but I can beleive that it does make people fat. I nerver eat hot lunch only sandwhiches becaue I dont like the food. It makes me feel horrible at gym it doent help.
I saw this coming, if people are to fat to go into the military than we have no one to protect us from the enemy.
I totally agree with you tons of Americans are getting over wight ecspecily the children we stop feeding the children junk food are we will all for obesity
Gee I never reilized that. I have always wanted to be a army airborne ranger and that would really be to bad if I could'nt join!