Free Essay: The Government Needs to Regulate What Students Eat at School

It is no secret that most kids like consuming junk foods. They resist eating healthy meals both at home and in school. When the government undertakes the responsibility of regulating what children eat in school, it will ensure that more nutritious meals are provided. As much as children desist the new healthy meals, with time they will come to enjoy them. When the changes are slowly, they will definitely be accepted and come in effect. The government, in conjunction with groups promoting good nutrition (these include, Food Research, Action Centre) should work hand in hand and also contribute food and money, which will help in improving nutrition in schools. A healthy diet is highly beneficial to children; mentally, physically, emotionally and psychologically.

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Most school menus dont include fruit and vegetables. In fact, most of their meals contain calories, fat and salt. Schools should have healthier school meals and this is where the government is needed. It should set guidelines and set new laws, which push for healthier meals. These meals should contain fewer calories, less fat, less salt and more of whole grains, cereals, vegetables and fruits. These would be excellent goals and all the school systems should be forced to adhere to meet the new regulations. Even parents would be in support of this.

A healthy diet is good for a child and his education. It eliminates the risk of poor diet related problems and therefore the kids can be healthier and happier. Childhood can be improved through better eating practices and participating in physical exercises. Through enforcing the set rules and guidelines, which promote a healthier diet, children will enjoy the learning process.

Another reason why the government should regulate what students eat in school is to tackle the problem of overweight and obesity. Childhood obesity is a problem facing many European nations and this has been contributed by poor diet and consumption of unhealthy meals. Being overweight brings very many complications and a variety of diseases, some of which include, diabetes and heart diseases. Children living with these diseases have very difficult lives and the cost incurred to cure those diseases is high. They also face trauma and segregation by the society.

The youth are the future leaders of the country. If consumption of unhealthy meals continues, our country will be less healthy and this will affect every sector of the economy. To create a healthier country, in terms of economy and politics, the government needs to regulate what is eaten in schools. The money used to solve these health related problems would be put into other more beneficial projects like creating jobs and employment, developing infrastructure, building more schools, equipping hospitals with better equipment and improving the economy of the state.

Another benefit is that it would help people who do not know how to eat healthy. Most people are ignorant when it comes to dietary issues and when the government starts regulating what is eaten in school; some will opt to try what is being suggested. When cereals, whole grains, vegetables and fruits are introduced fully into the system and the positive impacts and changes observed, this will encourage other people to follow the same. However, as of now, very little is being done to sensitize people on what a healthy meal should contain.

A healthy diet stops fatal diseases and therefore people would live longer. Obesity makes one likely to develop the following diseases; high blood pressure, stroke, heart diseases, some types of cancers, gout, breathing problems, gall bladder disease and gallstones, coronary heart diseases, stroke, osteoarthritis, sleep apnea, menstrual issues and infertility in women among other problems. A healthy diet right from childhood helps in eliminating all these problems. Obesity in itself is associated with 100,000 deaths and above every year.

A lot of money is used to cover hospitals bills related to the diseases mentioned above. If all this money is channeled towards improving other sectors of the economy, this would be highly beneficial. Several billion dollars are incurred yearly in dealing with medical costs of obesity.

Lunches should be regulated to make sure that there are more options, which are all healthy and nutritious, for the students. It is the right of students to enjoy a nice variety of options for lunch. However, this should be made known to both the students and parents.

Works cited

Katherine Ralston How Government Policies and Regulations Can Affect Dietary Choices http://www.ers.usda.gov/media/91084/aib750q_1_.pdf

Gary H. Gibbons What Are the Health Risks of Overweight and Obesity? https://www.nhlbi.nih.gov/health/health-topics/topics/obe/atrisk

Gerry Pugliese Will U.S. Government Regulate All Food Sold in Schools? http://www.dietblog.com/09/us_government_looking_to_regulate_all_food_sold_in_schools.php

Mary Story Schools and Obesity Prevention Creating School Environments and Policies to Promote Healthy Eating and Physical Activity http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2879179/

Peter Attia How much control should the government have over our health? http://eatingacademy.com/nutrition/how-much-control-should-the-government-have-over-our-health