Bans on School Bake Sales -- Really???
Recently, New York City banned bake sales in schools. Sixteen states, including California, have imposed similar limitations on foods high in calories, fat and sugar in schools.
I can understand the sentiment and the motivation -- however misguided -- behind the new rules. Childhood obesity is a major concern, and we should be doing all we can to curb sugary drinks and unhealthy snacks in schools. But does anyone really think banning bake sales will somehow counter sedentary lifestyles, poor nutrition, and other unhealthy lifestyle habits that are increasing kids-- and adults' -- waistlines?
Just as banning baked goods from school grounds is no magic bullet for our nation's obesity problem, fighting obesity has to take a multi-pronged, reasonable approach. Parents and schools can work together to teach kids how to eat right and make sure they get enough physical activity. Once they have the real tools make healthy choices, a cookie or a muffin here and there will be a once-in-a-while treat, hardly worthy of a ban much less a second thought.
What better way to start working together than to strike where the kids will notice? Banning sugary treats on campus is a good idea because we must change the mind set that these types of foods are “no big deal”. The children will notice and want to know why. This single action begins the conversation which leads to better habits and attitudes toward food. We can not control what foods happen at home, but school is and should be controlable. A place for kids to *learn* healthy habits.
I think this is a way to teach kids how to choose healthy foods. With all the birthday cakes, holiday treats, and everyday treats, we don’t need another “treat” disguised in the name of fundraising.
My daughter is dismayed that her school club will have a harder time raising money, but I support the new rules. My kids certainly know about healthy food choices, and they are fairly careful about what they buy for lunches and snacks. The bake sales, though, have the stamp of approval because they’re for a good cause, and are harder to resist.
Given the NY budget cuts, the bake sales at my daughter’s school were constant and the treats were daily, not occasional. The solution isn’t bake sales, it’s more money for schools, including the clubs and sports that provide a well-rounded education. Let’s not balance the budget on the bodies of our children.
Absolutely, Laura! Parents and schools should not undermine the health of students in pursuing funding for anything! There are a multitude of creative non-food fundraising methods available today. Taking the “easy way out” by hosting a no-brainer bake sale demonstrates our lack of integrity. We spend billions of dollars to teach nutrition curriculum that we TELL our children is important for their health, but then we DO the exact opposite. Adults must model the healthy eating behaviors that we want to see in our children. That means we ALL must change our unhealthy habits. Children don’t raise themselves. They lack the mental maturity to make the best decisions for themselves, so we must step up and accept responsibility for providing them not only with the healthiest choices, but also demonstrating with our actions that wellness is valuable. Whatever we have been doing is obviously NOT producing the healthiest human beings. The nation-wide obesity crisis, the diabetes and heart disease epidemics – this is a HUGE wake-up call that cannot be ignored. I do not think that cupcakes are evil, but what we have going on is a “layering effect” in which every “treat” children get during a day is being construed as “no big deal” by whomever is offering it. None of the adults in these kids lives are taking into account how many other “treats” a kid has consumed all day, and so over time, more and more people are putting treat foods in front of kids, in the forms of: candy rewards for good behavior, fast food rewards for academic achievement, an overwhelming number of birthday celebrations and classroom “parties”, junk-food or candy fundraisers, etc. Rather than everyone pointing fingers at someone else for having caused the current child health crises, I hope that EVERYONE will step up and do whatever is in THEIR control to help address the issues. That means PTAs and booster clubs can use non-food fundraising, and schools can cut down on birthday celebrations held during school to once per month, and teachers can give children praise and encouragement rather than candy as a reward for good behavior, and school districts can offer non-food incentives for academic achievement. Every person can have a positive effect in turning these child health crises around. It takes all of us and it takes demonstrating some integrity. Sadly, I am noticing that few adults actually demonstrate any integrity when it comes to this issue.