As a parent looks at their child’s small body, a blueprint of the future, it is natural to wonder, "What will this child become as an adult?" Everyone wants the best for their offspring but parents know that wanting and making sure that they get all the help they need takes more than just wishing on a star.
According to the “Healthy Americans Organization’s recently released report , adult and childhood obesity increased in 2009. One wonders, “How can this be? Especially, in a year when so much media attention has been focused on the issue. This is probably because the foundation of obesity is set when children are the most active and seem the most fit and learned habits are hard to break.
Diets that limit variety in foods are defended by the “my child is a fussy eater” excuse. Processed foods are substituted for real foods in home and school diets using the excuses of cost, convenience and so-called time saving. Unhealthy building blocks for future adults are created by limiting variety and not offering new real foods. They are created by supplying processed foods as replacements for real food. The result is an adult who, one day, will not fit into a single seat on an airplane or even a standard coffin when they prematurely expire from diet induced diseases. The Western Diet is the most pervasive pandemic to fear in our world today.
Recently published information, by the The Telethon Institute of Child Health Studies notes that the Raine Study indicates a link between diet and ADHD. For over a decade information has been reported about the link between the Western Diet and heart disease, diabetes and other such ailments, but habits are hard to change.
The Child Nutrition Act expires September 30, 2010 and includes the mechanism of dictating the American school lunch program, which the majority of our children rely upon. Jamie Oliver has been working on programs and legislation that refocuses Americans on the health of their children. The school lunch program is one in which all Americans should be involved. While there are many ways to bring the deficit down, sacrificing a child’s health is not the way to do it.
As always, we have to remind our legislators that, while there is much on their plates and although they may disagree on just about everything, we will not let them ignore our children and their health. It is time to tell our legislators to ask for the House and Senate to bring forward for debate, then support and pass substantial Child Nutrition legislation.
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