Healthy Kids=Healthier Future

The New Brunswick school system has a health initiative that encourages healthy snacks and lunches for kids. They have the teachers enforce it to a degree, but really only by giving a canned response they are told to use. So, for example, if I were to call my son's teacher and ask if I could bring in cupcakes, her response would be, "We encourage healthy snacks in the classroom", but if I were to then arrive with cupcakes, they would be welcomed.

This so-called health initiative clearly doesn't apply to their volunteers, as they are fed things like pizza, chips and pop at the various events held throughout the year. The volunteers eat in a room where the children purchase milk at lunchtime. Isn't this setting a bad example for them?

The absolute icing on the cake is the hot lunch program. This program, although helpful to parents, is the furthest thing from healthy. Twice a week, lunches are offered and consist of Greco pizza, a half piece of fruit and milk or Burger King, half piece of fruit or milk.  Why not get a contract with a local grocery store and do up snack packs of fruit, veggies, cheese and crackers? Or even veggie Subs from Subway?

As for why my son's school has chosen the previously mentioned businesses for hot lunches, I'm not exactly sure, but I would bet that it's because they offer the lowest price. This makes me sad. I would gladly spend an extra dollar on lunch for my kids if it meant they were getting something real and healthier. Am I alone on this?

Another very upsetting fact is that many kids can't even recognize certain fruits and vegetables in their true, unprocessed form. This next generation is so disconnected from the food they are putting into their bodies. A  chicken nugget is just a kind of "food", not actually something that came from a living creature.

Healthy living has to be taught and enforced in school. Our kids spend more awake hours with their teachers than with their families. Children, especially at a young age, believe what their teachers say to be the gospel truth. So, why not use this for good and have our teachers teach and enforce nutrition? Instead of a brief unit that focuses on the highly flawed Canada Food guide, incorporate healthy living into everyday of school. Many children will not learn about healthy living at home, but imagine how many children can be reached by teaching it in school!

Taking proper care of our children is an investment in their future, and in ours. It's never too late to start eating right, but the earlier you start the better.