Can we talk about "healthy" food?

[regentrude]

And I stand by what I said about plain water vs. flavored. If I'm drinking water and you're drinking diluted apple juice the fact that it's less sweet than regular apple juice is immaterial to the comparison. Being too particular for the basic substance on which our life as animals depends seems consumeristic in the extreme.

 

OK, then the school should ban all drinks except plain water. If that were a rule, at least it would be a rule that makes sense.

It's allowing plain juice but not diluted one that is ridiculous.

 

Also, I question whether it is necessary to have as many rules as they have in schools in this country: what the kids eat, what they drink, how they dress, not to talk in the hallway when lining up, when to go to the bathroom, to stay longer at school based on whether you walk or ride a car...  I have seen schools do just fine without overlegislating every aspect of the kids' lives. It is unnecessary.

[MFG]

OK, then the school should ban all drinks except plain water. If that were a rule, at least it would be a rule that makes sense.

It's allowing plain juice but not diluted one that is ridiculous.

But you CAN have diluted juice. It just has to be diluted with still water, not carbonated. Because...reasons.

[Catwoman]

I don't see how banning carbonation would increase sugar consumption. Reality is that at least 95% of the carbonated beverages people would bring if there wasn't that rule are the sugary type, and they're a good bit more sugary than most other sweet drinks. If you are opposed to sugar consumption period, you can have your child drink plain water. It's not like your only choices are a sugary non-carbonated drink or a sugar-free flavored seltzer water. Or if you do... what are the chances that a kid who's been raised to be able to refuse plain water in favor of flavored has such a healthy diet anyway? I enjoy an occasional soda but I don't think that people who routinely substitute a commercial product for ordinary drinking water are in any position to look down at the rest of us in terms of lifestyle.

 

Besides, as previously stated there are reasons other than nutrition for not wanting soda in school.

It's okay for you to judge people as not having a healthy diet if they drink sugary beverages, but it's not okay for other people to "look down" on your lifestyle because you prefer plain water? Isn't that kind of hypocritical?

 

I don't see why anyone feels that they should be judging other families simply because their kids eat some chips or cookies with their lunch and prefer to drink a sweet beverage instead of plain water or milk, so maybe I shouldn't be posting in this thread at all.

Edited August 25, 2017 by Catwoman

[ktgrok]

I don't think it's snowflake syndrome if I think the rules should be different for everyone. If I wanted an exception for just my kid it would be.

[happypamama]

Or belching contests.

 

I assume behind every inane school rule is a bunch of unruly 10-11yo boys who pushed the boundaries too far. The boys in my fifth grade class all got write ups for having a peeing for distance contest during a class break. They are why we can't have nice things!

Hahahaha! Yeah, that might be it too.

[2squared]

When I was little, think K, 1 and 2, so like 81, 82, 83ish, my private K-12 school with less than 500 students total had parties once a month for those grades I was in (I can't speak to how B-Days were handled in the older grades) These parties were for about an hour at the end of the day. We sang happy birthday to all kids that had birthdays that month. We got cupcakes and chocolate milk lol. We would play games like hangman, have a scavenger hunt for our classmates, things like that.

 

We also did a few other holiday parties each year like Halloween, Christmas etc. Halloween in particular we would do a whole afternoon party, everyone would bring something, everyone would serve their treat that they brought, with kids who didn't bring a treat having jobs like passing out the napkins, picking up the trash, etc. We would do a parade of costumes (in a Catholic school :-) ) In fourth or fifth grade, I don't think we had quite so many parties, though we still did the costume parade. I do remember one teacher helping a kid come up with a mask on the fly in fourth when he didn't have a costume for the parade.

 

BUT...that was about it. We also didn't have half days. And I remember going to school until like halfway through June, but not starting till after Labor Day. And I remember in 3rd, 4th, and 5th, the kids helped in the cafeteria. Every classroom took a week where instead of recess after lunch, or rather, before they went out on a shorter recess, the kids in the class had to do things like wipe off and put away the tables, the chairs etc. Spraying off the trays for the dishwasher, putting them away after they were washed, etc etc. I can't imagine schools making kids do things like that now a days.

The kids in our Catholic parochial school have jobs just like that. Jr high kids serve lunch and set up and take down tables and chairs. All grades have particular jobs, including recycling, garbage collection, etc.

[Ausmumof3]

Really? I haven't heard of that. Not saying I NEVER heard of it, but I'm not under the impression it is super common.

 

But, for example, let's say someone cuts up a bunch of apples and the knife they used wasn't washed so well after they cut their peanut butter sandwiches. Now the apples might become dangerous for someone with a peanut allergy. KWIM? It is highly unlikely this will be the same situation with prepackaged cut up apples. Although..damn I can't imaging wasting money on that. Why not just buy bags of apples and don't cut them.

 

Or..have people bring their own dang food. Or don't have constant food parties. What is with all the food parties at school?

There have been a couple of food poisoning scares with bagged produce here - salmonella from bagged lettuce and something nasty from frozen berries as well. I'm sure the stuff happens with home kitchens too though it just doesn't make the media because one person giving themselves food poisoning isn't news worthy.

[Ausmumof3]

Why?

carbonated water is all we ever drink. I don't see why this is a "special" or unhealthy food. Carbon dioxide is not harmful.

 

I think carbonation changes the ph. If you are drinking carbonated water with your meal it's fine but dentists don't like kids drinking it all day because it keeps the mouth more acidic increasing the risk of cavities?

[sewingmama]

I think most of the culture surrounding food is developed in families, not schools. I, for example, do not know anybody back home who eats from trays in front of the TV. I am sure these people exist, but the normal thing is to eat meals at a table from plates, with utensils. Children are taught to use utensils from toddlerhood on.

 

The notion that people other than babies need to have constant access to water is a cultural one that does not, historically, exist in Germany; there are, for example, no public drinking fountains, and cars did not have cupholders until recently, and shopping carts definitely don't - because people drink at meals. The carrying of bottles and cups everywhere and the constant drinking even at inappropriate times is a fairly recent phenomenon inherited from the US.

In schools, kids get to eat and drink in the breaks between periods - not during class.

I doubt its cultural...more like climate dependent. In Germany where its cold you can get away with only drinking at meals. In Australia you'd die from heatstroke. I would have thought that would have been obvious. My mother is German...she adapted pretty quick to drinking more when she moved here and she never suggested we only drink at meals. You cant walk anyway here in summer without being dying for a drink of water within 20 minutes..it gets expensive if you don't BYO.. I do suspect though ...all those cupholders are for coffee cups rather then water. People used to only drink coffee at meals...now it seems they live off it...coffee drinking would definately count as cultural 😉 Edited August 26, 2017 by sewingmama

[sewingmama]

Except that people get sick from packaged veg all the time.

Yes they do..its one of the biggest causes of salmonella poisioning. My doctor says he never eats it due to all the cases he has treated over the years.

[sewingmama]

I think carbonation changes the ph. If you are drinking carbonated water with your meal it's fine but dentists don't like kids drinking it all day because it keeps the mouth more acidic increasing the risk of cavities?

Not only that..my kids dentist reminds me over and over fruit should only be eaten with meals and never as snacks because the sugar and acid sitting on their teeth is harmful. My two kids who hate fruit have perfect teeth. My kid who eats the healthiest, detests processed food and snacks on fruit and vegies has had a couple rotten teeth..I was so suprised.