Childhood Obesity in Mexico

“Mexico Puts Its Children on a Diet” by Elisabeth Malkin
New York Times, March 13, 2011

Topic: Childhood obesity in Mexico

Summary: New guidelines in Mexico have been implemented to regulate what types of snack foods can be sold in schools (Mexican public schools do not provide lunch). The guidelines prohibit soda, limit portions, fried foods, and sugar in snacks sold at recess.

Intended audience: General Public

Key Points:

• Mexico has one of the highest obesity rates in the world (similar to the United States)
• Regulations were relaxed from original proposal, but may still be successful – at least they are a step in the right direction
• “The central issue is to educate children to exercise moderation in what they eat and emphasize healthier products”
• Some schools have already done this on their own – a principal at an elementary school in Mexico City has remade the recess menu.

Relevance: We have seen a lot of articles posted about childhood obesity – I believe they have all been in the United States. It is interesting to see an article about a different country struggling with the same issues of soda and junk food sold at school. An 11 year old in the article says, “Almost all of the girls eat fruit. Sometimes we eat candy. But that’s because we’re kids.” I think that it is important for schools to offer healthy options for students at snack/lunch and also educate on why that is important. Because, as the article says, as soon as school is over, students “poured out of the gates onto a narrow street cluttered with vendors selling candy, chips, nachos, and ice cream.” Junk food is everywhere, and just eliminating it from schools without any education on nutrition and exercise will not have a large impact. When I was in middle school, I always got off at the school bus stop by the minimart to buy myself candy, cookies, etc.

Fighting obesity

"Taylor Elementary a model in fighting obesity," by Jill Tucker, the SF Chroncile, Feb. 9, 2011

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2011/02/09/MN5V1HKEVP.DTL


Good nutrition has joined the pantheon of the three "R's" at a Portola neighborhood school in San Francisco. The school holds nutrition and cooking classes, has its own garden and devotes time daily for physical fitness. Michelle Obama held the school up as a national example in her Let's Move campaign to fight childhood obesity. The school has focused on the problem for years and has managed to reduce obesity to almost zero.
Of course, nationally the rate is skyrocketing, as the article points out. At least 1 in 3 American children are obese, with the rate climbing to 40% for African Americans and Latinos. But children at this school snack on vegetables and fruits from their garden and learn about healthy foods as part of the curriculum. This story is very relevant to parents and educators, who are clearly the main audience. But society as whole should take notice since the health costs affect us all and the cost to the children is high as well. This is clearly a good example of how schools can and should step in to help out their students.

Obesity and School Lunches

“Childhood: Obesity and School Lunches” by Rani Caryn Rabin
New York Times, February 4^th, 2011
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/02/08/health/research/08childhood.html?_r=1&ref=health

Topic: School lunches may be a contributing factor of the childhood obesity epidemic

Summary: A new study of over 1,000 sixth graders found that students who eat school lunches showed higher rates of obesity than those who brought their own lunch to school. The article, although brief, touches on types of food served in school lunch, numbers from the study, the new law requiring lower calorie school lunches, and recognizes that decreased physical inactivity also has an impact on weight. Follow this link to read comments on the article, some of which include additional information on the subject (some sourced, some not). http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/02/04/when-its-tater-tot-day-at-school/?ref=health
Intended audience: General Public

Key Points:

· Students “who regularly had the school lunch were 29 percent more likely to be obese than those who brought lunch from home.”

· School lunches are typically made of high energy low nutrient food because it is less expensive.

· A Federal law passed in December will limit the number of calories served in school lunches and require a broader selection of fruits and veggies to be made available to kids.

Relevance: With budget cuts to P.E. programs and potential cuts to recess, kids aren’t getting the physical activity they used to at schools. This goes with the topic of educating the whole child. Though this article does not touch on it, there are many interesting things going on in regards to school lunches. Farm to school programs, school gardens, etc.