Banning soda in cafeterias oversteps bounds of schools

When I was in elementary school, there was a lunchtime pattern for which there were rarely… When I was in elementary school, there was a lunchtime pattern for which there were rarely deviations: Girls packed their lunches and boys bought their lunches from the cafeteria.

I, however, bought my lunch. I loved the way the piles of tater tots formed mountains on my tray. I loved the appeal of eating a foot-long hot dog. And I loved how each day gave me the opportunity to choose between white or chocolate milk.

Soon, kids won’t be faced with the colossal decision of choosing between chocolate or white milk. According to CNN.com, a deal was reached in which the country’s largest beverage distributors agreed to halt the sale of non-diet soda to most public schools in an effort to combat childhood obesity.

The deal would ensure that students of public high schools can buy only diet soda while elementary and middle school students can only buy unsweetened juice, low-fat milk and water.

Although the goal is legitimate and the problem of childhood obesity is undeniable, I don’t believe it’s the responsibility of the schools to fight it by limiting choices to assure that kids will only consume healthy drinks on their watches. The schools’ responsibilities are to keep children safe while at school, treat all students fairly and give them the best education possible — not force diets.

When I was a kid I thrived off an all-bad-for-me diet. The reason why obesity was never a concern for me was because I was always active. For as long as I can remember, I ran around outside and played sports, which prevented me from ever gaining weight.

For that reason I believe it’s up to parents, not schools, to raise their kids to value healthy lifestyles. They should encourage their kids to be active and stress the benefits of playing sports, both for health-related and non-health-related reasons.

That would also most likely be advantageous for the rest of the kids’ lives, as most people who were active at young ages usually stay active to some degree for most of their lives.

According to the Mayo Clinic, kids become more sedentary every year and put on more weight consequently and that the childhood obesity rate has more than tripled over the past 30 years. Such facts exemplify the pressing need for parental encouragement to pursue healthy lifestyles.

If a kid is lazy and not interested in sports and his own parents won’t push him to get involved with some physical activity, what motivation will he have to peel himself away from his standard four hours of Play Station 2?

In regards to eating healthy, if school lunch is such a concern for certain parents, they should pack their kids’ lunches. It can be speculated that even if this is done, kids can still toss the drinks their parents packed them and buy soda at school. If they really want soda that bad, they’re going to get it anyways, like at a friend’s house, for example.

And as far as high school students are concerned, if they’re old enough to drive, see R rated movies, and, for some, vote, buy cigarettes and go to strip clubs, they’re old enough to understand the concept of calories and decide whether or not they want to buy a can of non-diet soda.

Taking soda out of vending machines and forcing kids to drink low-fat milk and unsweetened juice would be punishing kids who aren’t really threatened by childhood obesity. Many kids will probably never become obese no matter what they eat or drink. Should they be forced to go on this low-fat diet just because some of their classmates eat too much, are physically inactive or have slow metabolisms? They should still be encouraged to pursue healthy eating habits, but I’ve never known 2 percent milk to cause debilitating health effects.

Also, if there’s one thing adults should have learned by now it’s that depriving kids of something makes them desire it even more, for the sake of curiosity or rebellion. It’s naive to think that kids won’t be exposed to caloric drinks if they’re removed from school. Rather than taking away the opportunities to purchase such drinks, parents should encourage them to make healthy choices and to be physically active.

Although the intentions behind the deal are good, it’s not the schools’ place to choose what the students drink during lunch. The only other time in which the school limits such a form of personal choice is regarding dress codes, which are understandable if an aim of schools is to maintain non-distracting learning environments.

Parents must take accountability if their kids are obese and not put the blame on the schools for their availability of caloric drinks. Instead of limiting their choices, kids should be encouraged to make the right choices, or at least their own choices.

But if this deal is the cause of a drastic decrease in childhood obesity, I will swallow my words.

Soda or pop? E-mail Anjali at amn17@pitt.edu.