~ HAS THE WORLD GONE MAD...? New madness ?? ~

[Hattie the Hen]

I think it probably has.........!? Please read these articles:


http://www.chewswise.com/chews/2010...ail&utm_campaign=Feed:+ChewsWise+(Chews+Wise)


http://www.theslowcook.com/2010/04/06/a-teacher-crusades-for-better-school-food-and-gets-stomped/


Hattie

 

[wifezilla]

Why does this not surprise me???

I wonder if I can find a way to contact this woman and tell her she is my hero.



UPDATE: Found a way to send her a message...
http://www.google.com/profiles/Ms.Heaps

Stop by and let her know how you feel.

 

[Hattie the Hen]

wifezilla.......I couldn't agree more....!!

I just want to add this site as I think it expands the information on this lunatic situation. We have similar situations over here in the UK despite huge campaigns against bad food in schools etc. Parents must be made aware of their responsibilities for their childrens' health & they must influence the school's choice of food sold/given to them.

http://fedupwithschoollunch.blogspot.com/


Hattie

 

[boggybranch]

What is that I see?....That cloud of dust, coming from the north........Why, I do believe it's the first lady.

 

[wifezilla]

I have had m own battles with the school. My son is VERY autistic. He reacts VERY BADLY to wheat, sugars, and other carby foods. I have been packing his lunch for 3 years. But the weight he lost when we changed his diet came back at school. The symptoms we finally got to stop (severe break outs, facial flushing, hyperactivity) came back. Turns out the bus driver was giving the kids candy!!!

So the teachers hand out snacks, the lunch food is loaded with carbs and sugar and then the bus drivers are giving them crap.

 

[Ladyhawke1]

"Mendy Heaps, a stellar English teacher for years....."



Elizabeth Middle School
34427 County Road 13
Elizabeth, CO 80107
Elbert County

VOICEPHONE: (303) 646-4520

Grades 6-8
Public school
514 students

We can always speak up. :/

 

[journey11]

Just watched the first episode of Jamie Oliver's Food Revolution (after following the links). I live about an hour from Huntington. I had never heard about this show before because I don't watch much tv. Very interesting--I am hooked. I want to see how it ends, how far he gets with his message.

I cook from scratch and am very vigilant about my family's foods. I really agree with this guy that the grab-and-go, nuke it, pre-packaged, artificial junk in a box thing is where the problem lies. There is very little "real" food in any of this stuff! The parents are serving it to their kids at home because they're either too lazy or too busy to cook a real meal and they get it at school too. Added salt, sugar, preservatives and hydrogenated oils make up the majority of the ingredients in these preprocessed foods (much less the pesticides, growth hormones and other chemical residues that aren't listed on the box).

It is really hard to control your kid's diets when they are away from home! You really have to be nasty about it, and then people just laugh at you, say you're being uptight and do it anyway.

My MIL is my biggest antagonist when it comes to training my toddler's tastebuds toward healthier choices. We see her every Tuesday and she always brings a couple grocery bags full of junk food with her (the whole grandma spoiling thing). There's certain things I don't buy for my family that she has taken upon herself to do so. She thinks she's helping out and saving us money by getting these things on sale and bringing them to us. Just last week I had another talk with her about nutrition and my daughter's snacks and tried as gently as possible to explain what kind of things I would like for her to bring (because she's going to do it anyway) and what to not bother buying. I think I am going to have to try again and maybe even make her a list because last night she brought more junk!

Some things have the outward appearance of being healthy and that really throws her off! For example, yougurt covered raisins--which are very sugary and are coated with hydrogenated oil (to make it stick). Also juice has been a problem...how on earth can you explain to your MIL that juice isn't actually healthy! It's mostly sugar and the "vitamin C" it has is added because it has no nutritional value on its own. She thinks I'm crazy because I only give my daughter 4 oz of juice a day and I water that down 50/50. I don't give her soda, but my MIL does when I'm not looking. I don't want her drinking all that sugar. I'd rather she get her vitamin C from fresh fruit and veggies. I have told my MIL over and over that my toddler would rather have an apple than a cookie any day. Now is the time to train her eating habits and it really frustrates me that my MIL brings her all these "treats". Most of what she brings we just throw away and she is wasting her money. It is really hard to talk to her about it because she gets all hyper-sensitive and paranoid and it will really strain the relationship, but it already is because I am really getting aggravated with her.
((Can't you tell! ))

 

[vfem]

The problem obviously is the parents don't want to take responsiblity, and the school doesn't want to have upset parents... and the cycle continues.

THOSE who step in are ignored, then punished and then denied in the community because they point out not only the health issue but the irresponible parent behind the child who allows the bad food to be served. When the parents don't care, the kids don't care...

DENIAL on the parents and school's part will do no good. Making the teacher wear the scarlet letter will do no good either.

Then again, I hope she wasn't forcing things on students who's parents opted them out.

 

[curly_kate]

This is a fascinating study of how food impacts students behavior and performance: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OYG4V_hogzI. I've read/heard about this in several places, and with all of the pressure to have kids meet state standards & pass the tests, you'd think more school boards would make the connection between good food and student performance. You've got to feed those brains to help them grow!

 

[journey11]

I think part of it comes down to economy (and I think if you looked at the numbers declaring Huntington, WV the unhealthiest city, you'd also see a link to poverty). It is quicker and cheaper for the schools to serve these foods. To hire enough cooks to have time to prepare whole foods (take real potatoes v/s the instant potatoes for example) would put a strain on the school's budgets. When you consider that the community's property taxes are a large part of their operating money, some areas don't have as much to work with. Junk food is just simply cheaper (which still blows my mind). And they're dealing with the kids acquired eating habits, which for many of them it's the same kind of food at home. A lot of people have to make their grocery selections based on a tight budget and schools do as well.

They'll levy taxes to buy new computers or an athletic facility, but not too many people will consider that to improve the school lunch program. For some of these kids it's the closest thing to a real meal they get during the day because of their situation at home, sad but true.

I just wish they'd give as much attention to nutrition as they do to highschool football programs. A little of that money would make a big difference. And people will volunteer for the band boosters--but not for the lunch room.