ENC 1102
11 December 2017
Nutrition in the Elementary School Setting
What children eat is essential to their development especially at such an early age. School lunches have changed throughout the years but in the US, specifically, they always tend to be frozen foods that have no nutritional value. Around the world you will see school lunches that have foods from all 5 food groups: fruits, vegetables, protein, grains, and dairy. The way we feed our children should be a top priority of ours because it affects the way the learn in class, and also for many children it may be the only meal they eat that day. According to Marilyn Briggs, writer for the Center of Ecoliteracy, “Poor diet and physical inactivity are responsible for as many premature deaths as is tobacco—more than 1,200 deaths a day”, that is just another reason why we need to make a change. This is a growing epidemic and we should find ways to make our children's school lunches healthier for them because it will benefit how they learn, and retain information and also make them overall happier.
Breakfast and lunch are the most important meals of the day and for students they are eaten at school. It is supposed to boosts their metabolism and give them enough energy to go about the rest of their day. But it's probably one of the biggest problems at many schools around the US. For one, children are advised to eat healthy and taught about the benefits of eating healthy but it is not always possible with the choices that are provided at in the schools around the country. Nutrition is important to people of all ages but especially for children whose brains are not fully developed because it helps their bodies and brains grow and develop into the way that they are supposed to. One way that we can create this change is by actually educating our children the benefits of eating healthy, what foods are good for them and also which foods are bad for them. But it does not stop there, there should be more programs in the school systems where students are given the opportunity to grow the fruits and vegetables that will be included in their school lunches. Not only will it encourage students to make healthier choices in school but it will teach them to take what they learn to a greater extent and do the same at home and spark a bigger change in their households.
As Michael Pollan writes in “The Omnivore's Dilemma A Natural History of Four Meals”, traditional farming practices in which there is no waste being made because he grows grains, fruits, and vegetables that both animals and humans can eat. Pollan’s essay encourages readers to have serious doubts about industrial agriculture and processed food, and he believes that there is no need to take of the extra steps when there is a simpler and more organic way to farm. This contributes to my thought because if there were more gardens in homes as well as in schools people would have more fruits and vegetables in their diets and become overall healthi...
