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WASHINGTON — Thousands more children would eat lunches and dinners at school and all school food would become more nutritious under a bill President Barack Obama signed into law Monday, part of an administration-wide effort to combat childhood obesity.
“At a very basic level, this act is about doing what’s right for our children,” Obama said before signing the bill. The ceremony was moved from the White House, where most signings are held, to an elementary school in the District of Columbia to underscore the point.
Besides Obama, the bill also was a priority for his wife, Michelle, who launched a national campaign this year against childhood obesity.
“We can all agree that in the wealthiest nation on earth all children should have the basic nutrition they need to learn and grow and to pursue their dreams,” said Mrs. Obama. “Because in the end, nothing is more important than the health and well-being of our children. Nothing,”
The $4.5 billion measure increases the federal reimbursement for free school lunches by 6 cents a meal at a time when many school officials say they can’t afford to provide the meals. The bill will also expand access to free lunch programs and allow 20 million additional after-school meals to be served annually in all 50 states. Most states now only provide money for after-school snacks.
Many Republicans, including former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin, have criticized the effort and the fundraiser limits in particular, saying the bill is too expensive and an example of government overreach.
Supporters say the law is needed to stem rising health care costs due to expanding American waistlines and to feed hungry children in tough economic times. Mrs. Obama cited a group of former generals and military officials who have said unhealthy school lunches are a national security threat because weight problems are now the leading medical reason that recruits are rejected.
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HuffPost’s Miss Eco Etiquette and Editor of The Red, White and Green
Posted: October 27, 2010 08:41 AM
Send all your eco-inquiries to Jennifer Grayson at eco.etiquette@gmail.com. Questions may be edited for length and clarity.
I was at Target looking for a costume for my grandchild, and was overwhelmed by all the awful-smelling fumes in the costume aisle. Is this stuff safe for children? And while you’re at it, any other tips for a green Halloween?
-Kat
Remember when the biggest Halloween hazard was razor blades in the candy? Or so we all thought: We donned devilish masks and ran around the neighborhood giddily gathering piles of candy in our plastic pumpkins, coming home to stuff our faces with mini Mars bars and tiny Twix until our tummies hurt.
When you’re a kid, ignorance is bliss; now that I’m older, greener, and wiser, I know better: Turns out many masks aren’t rubber but toxic PVC; those plastic pumpkins are still sitting in the landfill all these years later; and the ingredients in conventional candies have been genetically modified.
But that doesn’t mean you should start passing out the pennies and raisins. There are few pleasures as wonderful in life as digging into a big ‘ol bag of trick-or-treat goodies, and even yours truly wouldn’t trade her bite-sized Baby Ruths for baby carrots.
With a few simple swaps, however, you can guard the health of the planet and your little ones (and your own, if you’re still a kid at heart) without sacrificing a ghoulish good time. Here, my top 10 tips for a green Halloween.
1. Pass on the plastic pumpkin. There’s no need to collect candy in a petrochemical-based plastic pumpkin holder when any reusable bag will do. Plus, you can collect more goodies by going retro and reusing an old pillowcase. Gotta go Halloween-themed? Check out the handmade reusable monster pouches from Freak-O-Bags.
2. Construct your own costume. Store-bought vinyl Halloween costumes and masks smell chemical-y because they’re actually off-gassing toxic chemicals — like phthalates, which have been linked to ADHD and feminized genitalia in baby boys. Check out these no-sew alternatives that reuse everyday items like coffee filters and old umbrellas.
3. …Or rent one. Looking for a more elaborate disguise? Secure one from a local costume rental shop. You may not avoid the aforementioned exposure to nasty chemicals, but at least you’ll have a greener conscience knowing that your synthetic-hair wig and plastic mallet will outfit another Thor next year.
4. Mind the makeup. Even Halloween face paint labeled “nontoxic” can contain poisonous metals. This, from the Campaign for Safe Cosmetics, which last year found lead (a neurotoxin that can reduce IQ) in all of the samples it analyzed. Paint your kids’ faces with your own eco-friendly makeup, or make your own with food-based ingredients.
5. Indulge in green goodies. Organic Halloween candies can break the bank if you get upwards of 500 trick-or-treaters every year, but if you only have a few sweet tooths to satisfy, pick up packs of treats that are free of genetically modified corn syrup and artificial dyes — like YummyEarth organic lollies.
6. Rethink the Reese’s. If you must buy in bulk, hold off on the Hershey’s brand: A new report points a finger at the candy king for the continued prevalence of child labor and trafficking in the cocoa industry. Nestlé, on the other hand, is working to improve social and environmental conditions for its cocoa farmers.
7. Compost your jack-o’-lantern. A pumpkin may be all-natural, but send it to the anaerobic environment of a sealed landfill and it will emit methane, a greenhouse gas 23 times more powerful than carbon dioxide. Help cut down on the 1.1 billion pounds of annual pumpkin waste by composting yours.
8. Ditch disposable decorations. The only thing that’s scary about plastic witches and goblins is the amount of time they’ll take to decompose in a dump (1,000 years). Stuff old clothes with newspaper for a sustainably scary scarecrow, or make dancing ghosts out of worn sheets and leaves.
9. Add a green glow. You’ll save electricity by creating a creepy, candle-lit atmosphere to welcome trick-or-treaters and party guests, but make sure you’re not causing indoor air pollution by burning petroleum-based paraffin. Light the way with candles made from beeswax or GM-free soy instead.
10. Find fun on foot. Driving your kids around town may help them haul the biggest loot, but it also wastes gas unnecessarily. If you live in a safe area, curb your kids’ candy carbon footprint by walking them around the neighborhood. Wise words for a green — and lean — Halloween!
School Menus Get a Makeover and the Kids Love It
In Five Years, Revolution Foods has Grown to Serve 350 Schools Classic Lunches with a Healthy Twist
By Bill Whitaker
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 Video Banning School Junk FoodThe Senate is considering a bill that would ban junk foods from being sold in schools. Margo Wootan of the Center for Science in the Public Interest speaks with Russ Mitchell.
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 Video New Menu For School LunchesFor more than three years, a school in Cambridge, Mass. has waged a war on fattening foods, with positive results. Kids at the school are happy with the healthy alternatives. Nancy Cordes reports.
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 Revolution Foods is hoping to transform school lunchrooms, by not serving anything with high-fructose corn syrup or trans-fat. (CBS)
(CBS) When was the last time you heard that kids in a school lunchroom love broccoli, carrots, lettuce and tomatoes?
CBS News correspondent Bill Whitaker reports students are saying “yes” to healthy foods, and “no” to junk food – all thanks to Kristin Richmond and Kirsten Tobey of Revolution Foods.
“We are just so motivated by the idea of creating a healthier generation,” Tobey said.
Unlike old school lunchrooms, Revolution Foods won’t serve anything with high-fructose corn syrup or trans-fat. Meats and dairy are antibiotic and hormone free. They prefer local, organic ingredients. Nothing is ever fried, but they promise it’s always tasty.
“We knew if students were given a choice of a healthy meal that actually tasted really good and looked really good and was approachable to them,” Richmond said. “We knew they would eat it.”
Five years ago, the Berkely Business School grads behind Revolution were preparing 200 meals a day for one school. Now they’re running a company that serves almost 60,000 fresh and healthy meals to mostly low-income students in 350 schools and programs from California to Washington, DC.
It’s pricier than standard fare. The government reimburses schools up to $2.75 a meal. Revolution foods cost $3-4 a meal. Schools say the added benefit to the students is worth the added cost.
Their recipe for success: classic dishes with a healthy twist: chicken teriyaki is served over brown rice. Spaghetti and meatballs is made with less sugar in the sauce, and students get a say in the menu.
They’re letting them know old eating habits are changing one healthy bite at a time.
latimes.com/health/boostershots/la-heb-pesticides-adhd-20100819,0,1176316.story
latimes.com
BOOSTER SHOTS: Oddities, musings and news form the health world
More evidence links pesticides to hyperactivity
10:59 AM PDT, August 19, 2010
A growing body of evidence is suggesting that exposure to organophosphate pesticides is a prime cause of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, ADHD. The findings are considered plausible to many experts because the pesticides are designed to attack the nervous systems of insects. It is not surprising, then, that they should also impinge on the nervous systems of humans who are exposed to them.
Forty organophosphate pesticides are registered in the United States, with at least 73 million pounds used each year in agricultural and residential settings.
ADHD is thought to affect 3% to 7% of American children, with boys affected more heavily than girls. Many experts believe its incidence has increase sharply in recent decades, but critics attribute the increased incidence to over-diagnosis. Some attribute the increase to the greater use of pesticides.
The newest study, reported Thursday in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives, examines the effects of both prenatal and childhood exposure to the pesticides, which are widely used in the United States to control insects on food crops. Epidemiologist Brenda Eskenazi of UC Berkeley and her colleagues have been studying more than 300 Mexican American children living in the heavily agricultural Salinas Valley. Because they live in a farming community, the children are more likely than others to be exposed to the pesticides, but the problems resulting from environmental exposure are often first seen in those with the highest exposure.
Eskenazi and her team tested for levels of pesticide metabolites in urine in the mothers twice during their pregnancies and several times in the children after birth. They then tested the children at ages 3 1/2 years and 5 years for attention disorders and ADHD, using the mothers’ reports, performance on standardized computer tests and behavior ratings from examiners. After correcting the data to account for lead exposure and other confounders, they found that each tenfold increase in pesticide levels in the mothers’ urine was associated with a fivefold increase in attention problems as measured by the assays. The effect was more pronounced in boys than in girls.
The study comes only three months after a Harvard study, looking at much lower levels of malathion in urine, found that a tenfold increase in pesticide levels was associated with a 55% increase in ADHD. The researchers believe that most of the children in the study were exposed to the malathion through food.
“It’s known that food is a significant source of pesticide exposure among the general population,” Eskenazi said in a statement. “I would recommend thoroughly washing fruits and vegetables before eating them, especially if you are pregnant.”
– Thomas H. Maugh II / Los Angeles Times
Tip 14: EWG’s Back-To-School Guide.
from: http://www.ewg.org/healthyhometips/backtoschool
Buying school supplies is an annual end-of-summer tradition. It’s also an opportunity to look for safer products for your children and their classrooms. The good news is that with a little time and attention, a backpack full of non-toxic school supplies is in reach. Purchase your back-to-school supplies (and any other item, for that matter) through EWG’s link to Amazon. Amazon will donate part of your purchase to EWG! Or download the PDF to take with you to the store.
This year, think greener when you stock up on these standard items:
- Art supplies. Many contain toxic chemicals that are not suitable for children — especially younger ones. Pay special attention to these: Paints should be water-based to avoid solvents and colored with natural, non-metal pigments. Don’t buy polymer clays that stay soft at room temperature or can be hardened in a home oven — they’re made from PVC (polyvinyl chloride) and often contain phthalates. Consider making your own “clay” out of common baking ingredients instead. Note: A label that says “Conforms to ASTM D-4236″ simply means the product is labeled as required, not necessarily safe.
- Hand washing. Choose sanitizers with ethanol (ethyl alcohol) but no fragrance, and liquid hand soaps without triclosan, triclocarban or fragrance. And remember: Plain soap and water is often just as effective! Learn more.
- Backpacks. If it’s time for a new one, look for natural fibers and skip those made with PVC. If natural fibers aren’t an option, polyester and nylon are better than PVC. (Check the label for #3, the symbol for PVC, or look for “no PVC” on the label.) Labels don’t always list the material, so you may need to contact manufacturers or visit their websites.
- Lunch boxes. Because they hold food, it’s especially important that lunch boxes be made from non-toxic materials with NO lead paint, PVC, BPA and antimicrobial chemicals. Some options are: cotton lunch bags, BPA-free plastic or unpainted stainless steel. Reuse utensils from home and pack food in reusable, rather than disposable, containers (such as lightweight stainless steel or #1, 2, 4 or 5 plastics). Find a safer lunch box on Amazon.
- Beverage bottles. Skip commercial bottled water — it’s expensive, wastes resources and the water quality isn’t necessarily better than tap. Instead, send your child to school with filtered water and other beverages in a reusable bottle made from BPA-free plastic, BPA-free aluminum or stainless steel, such as Klean Kanteen. Click here to order yours on Amazon. Learn more about the downside of bottled water here.
- Markers. Common crayons often contain paraffin wax, which is made from crude oil. Look for alternatives like soy and beeswax. Don’t buy dry-erase and permanent markers, which contain solvents. Be wary of plastic-encased crayons or scented markers — scents encourage kids to sniff them, and the chemicals used in the fragrances are not listed on the label. Try a pencil highlighter instead of the familiar plastic ones.
- Pencils and pens. Pick plain wooden pencils (no paint or glossy coating) made from sustainable wood or recycled newspaper. Skip the scented ones. Try to use recycled ballpoint pens. Find recycled pencils on Amazon.
- Notebooks and binders. Avoid plastic covers on binders and spiral notebooks; they’re usually made from PVC (#3 plastic). Opt for recycled cardboard or natural fibers instead, or look for “no PVC” on the label.
- Paper products. Look for recycled paper, available here, made from at least 30 percent post-consumer waste (PCW) that isn’t whitened with chlorine bleach. Or consider virgin paper made from alternative fibers or sustainably managed forests. Choose 100 percent recycled tissues and paper towels made with PCW and without chlorine bleach. Avoid added lotion, fragrance and dyes.
- Glue. Try to minimize kids’ exposures to extra-strong or instant adhesives like epoxies, model and “super” glues; they contain toxic solvents. Water-based glues are safer bets, though most are made from petrochemicals. Some better options are: glue sticks, white/yellow/clear “school” glue. Stock up today. Children should not use rubber cement.
- Cell phones. A lot of kids have cell phones. If purchasing a new phone, choose one with lower radiation (“SAR” value) by searching EWG’s cell phone database. Teach your child that when she’s not using it, she should turn it off, store it in her backpack or somewhere else away from the body, and text instead of talking. Get our eight cell phone safety tips here.Green
by Jasmin Malik Chua, 06/11/10
from: http://www.inhabitots.com/2010/06/11/85-of-kids-drinks-snacks-could-contain-high-levels-of-lead/
Another day, another “uh oh.” The latest kerfuffle? Quantities of lead in bottled juice, juice boxes, and packaged fruit could exceed federal limits for the lunchbox-toting set, according to the Environmental Law Foundation. The Bay Area-based environmental nonprofit, which enlisted the aid of a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency-certified lab in Berkeley, tested nearly 400 samples from 150 branded products marketed to children, including apple juice, grape juice, packaged pears and peaches (including baby food), and fruit cocktail mixes. The alarming results: 125 out of 146 products—or more than 85%—contained enough lead in a single serving to warrant a warning label under California’s Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986, better known as Prop. 65.
More troubling, perhaps, is the fact that the results tar both organic and conventional products: Earth’s Best Organic, 365 Everyday Value Organic, Trader Joe’s, and Walnut Acres get as fair of a shake as Welch’s, Minute Maid, Gerber, Del Monte, and Dole. Plus, most scientists concur that no safe level of exposure to lead exists, especially when it comes to babies and children.
ELF has dispatched notices to law-enforcement officials, including California’s attorney-general, district attorneys, and the affected manufacturers, retailers, and distributors. The notices start a clock for the companies to either bring themselves into compliance with Prop. 65 or to place “clear and reasonable warnings” on the food packages. If, at the end of 60 days, no law enforcement agency pursues prosecution, ELF will file a formal suit.
Until then, we’ll be squeezing our own fruit here at Inhabitots HQ. And chugging plenty of water.
LEAD-TAINTED PRODUCTS
1. 365 Everyday Value Organic 100% Juice Concord Grapes
2. Beech Nut 100% Apple Juice
3. Best Yet Bartlett Pear Halves in Heavy Syrup
4. Best Yet Chunky Mixed Fruit in Pear Juice
5. Best Yet Yellow Cling Peach Halves in Heavy Syrup
6. Chef’s Review Fruit Cocktail
7. Del Monte 100% Juice Fruit Cocktail
8. Del Monte Chunky Mixed Fruit in 100% Juice (peach, pear, grape, etc.)
9. Del Monte Diced Pears in Light Syrup
10. Del Monte Freestone Peach Slices in 100% Juice
11. Del Monte Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup (peach, pear, grapes)
12. Del Monte Fruit Cocktail No Sugar Added
13. Del Monte Lite Fruit Cocktail in Extra Light Syrup
14. Del Monte Pear Halves in Heavy Syrup
15. Del Monte Pear Halves, Bartlett Pears in 100% real fruit juice from concentrate
16. Del Monte Sliced Yellow Cling Peaches in 100% Juice
17. Del Monte Sliced Yellow Cling Peaches in heavy syrup
18. Dole Diced Peaches, Yellow Cling in light syrup
19. Dole Mixed Fruit in Light Syrup
20. Dole Pear Halves in Juice
21. Earth’s Best Organics Apple Juice
22. Eating Right Fruit Cocktail packed in Sucralose
23. Eating Right No Sugar Fruit Cocktail
24. First Street 100% Apple Cider from concentrate
25. First Street Apple Juice from concentrate 100% juice
26. First Street Diced Pears
27. First Street Fruit Cocktail in heavy syrup
28. First Street Grape Juice from concentrate 100% juice
29. First Street Sliced Bartlett
30. First Street Yellow Cling Peaches in heavy syrup
31. Full Circle Organic Apple Juice
32. Full Circle Organic Bartlett Pear Slices
33. Gerber 100% Juice – White Grape Juice
34. Gerber 100% Juice Apple Juice
35. Gerber 3rd Foods Peaches
36. Gerber 3rd Foods Pears
37. Golden Star Mixed Fruit in Light Syrup (peach, pineapple, pears)
38. Golden Star Peach Halves in Heavy Syrup
39. Great Value 100% Grape Juice
40. Great Value 100% No Sugar Added Apple Juice
41. Great Value Bartlett Pear Halves in 100% Juice
42. Great Value Bartlett Sliced Pears in Heavy Syrup
43. Great Value No Sugar Added Fruit Cocktail
44. Great Value Yellow Cling Sliced Peaches
45. Hansen’s Natural Apple Juice
46. Kedem Concord Grape Juice 100% pure grape juice
47. Kroger 100% Juice Apple Juice
48. Kroger Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup
49. Kroger Grape Juice 100% Juice
50. Kroger Lite Fruit Cocktail in Pear Juice
51. Kroger Value Fruit Mix (Peaches, pears, grapes)
52. Langers Apple Juice 100% Juice
53. Langers Grape Juice (Concord)
54. Langers Red Grape Juice
55. Libby’s Fruit Cocktail No Sugar Added (Sweetened with Splenda)
56. Libby’s Yellow Cling Peach Slices No Sugar Added (Sweetened with Splenda)
57. Market Pantry Diced Peaches in light syrup
58. Market Pantry Diced Pears in light syrup
59. Market Pantry Mixed Fruit in light syrup
60. Maxx Value Fruit Mix in Light Syrup (peach, pear, grape)
61. Maxx Value Pear Pieces in Light Syrup
62. Minute Maid Juice Apple – 100% Apple Juice
63. Motts 100% Apple Juice
64. Mrs. Brown’s Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup (peaches, pears, grapes)
65. O Organics Organic Grape Juice from concentrate
66. O Organics Organic Unfiltered Apple Juice Not From Concentrate
67. Old Orchard 100% Apple Juice
68. Parade 100% Juice Apple
69. Polar Mixed Fruit
70. Polar Peach Slices
71. Polar Pear Halves in light syrup
72. R.W. Knudsen Just Concord Grape Juice
73. R.W. Knudsen Organic Just Concord
74. Raley’s 100% Grape Juice
75. Raley’s Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup
76. Raley’s Premium 100% Apple Juice not from Concentrate
77. Raley’s Sliced Yellow Cling Peaches in Heavy Syrup
78. S&W Natural Style Fruit Cocktail in Lightly Sweetened Juice
79. S&W Natural Style Pear Slices in Juice
80. S&W Natural Style Yellow Cling Peach Slices in Lightly Sweetened Juice
81. S&W Premium Peach Halves Yellow Cling Peaches in light syrup
82. S&W Sun Pears Premium
83. Safeway 100% Juice Apple Cider
84. Safeway 100% Juice Apple Juice
85. Safeway 100% Juice Grape Juice
86. Safeway Diced Peaches in Light Syrup
87. Safeway Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup
88. Safeway Light Sugar Fruit Cocktail
89. Safeway Lite Bartlett Pear Halves in Pear Juice
90. Safeway Lite Fruit Cocktail in Pear Juice
91. Safeway Organic Grape Juice
92. Safeway Pear Halves in Light Juice
93. Safeway Yellow Cling Peach Slices in Pear Juice
94. Santa Cruz Organic Concord Grape Juice
95. Simple Value Yellow Cling Peaches in light syrup
96. Stater Bros. 100% Juice Apple Juice
97. Stater Bros. 100% Juice Grape Juice
98. Stater Bros. 100% Juice White Grape Juice
99. Stater Bros. Fruit Cocktail in Heavy Syrup
100. Stater Bros. Yellow Cling Peach Halves
101. Stater Bros. Yellow Cling Sliced Peaches in heavy syrup
102. Sunny Select 100% Apple Juice
103. Sunny Select 100% Grape Juice
104. Sunny Select Fruit Cocktail in Juice
105. Sunny Select Pear Halves in Pear Juice
106. Sunny Select Yellow Cling Sliced Peaches in Pear Juice
107. Trader Joe’s Certified Organic Apple Juice, pasteurized
108. Trader Joe’s Concord Grape Juice made from fress pressed organic concord grapes
109. Trader Joe’s Pear Halves in white grape juice
110. Trader Joe’s Yellow Cling Peach Halves in while grape juice
111. Tree Top 100% Juice Apple Cider
112. Tree Top 100% Juice, Grape
113. Truitt Brothers Pacific NorthWest Bartlett Pear Halves, in pear juice from concentrate
114. Valu Time Grape Drink from Concentrate
115. Valu Time Irregular Bartlett Pear Slices
116. Valu Time Yellow Cling Peach Slices
117. Walgreens Apple Juice from concentrate 100% juice
118. Walgreens Grape Juice from concentrate 100% juice
119. Walnut Acres Organic Concord Grape
120. Walnut Grove Market 100% Apple Juice
121. Walnut Grove Market Grape Juice
122. Walnut Grove Market Natural Peaches Sliced Yellow Cling in Light Syrup
123. Walnut Grove Market Natural Pear Halves in Heavy Syrup
124. Welch’s 100% Grape Juice (from Welch’s Concord Grapes)
125. Welch’s 100% Red Grape Juice from Concentrate
+ Lead Found in Children’s Food and Baby Food (PDF)
[Via NPR]
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Make a Splash, Read! At The Nevada County Library
Via Yubanet.com
Published on Jun 1, 2010 – 10:28:10 AM
By: Nevada County Libraries
June 1, 2010 – Looking for something to do this summer? Make a Splash, READ! Swim, go on pirate adventures, or have a luau. It’s all @ your library! Come to the Nevada County Libraries this summer to explore and find ways to make waves through programs, activities, and, of course, reading!
Young people from pre-school through school-age are welcome. Summer reading adventurers will receive reading logs, stickers, and more. It’s all free and fun, at your library! There will also be book lists and activity pages to help jumpstart your summer splash into fun. Come into the library each week to show off your reading lists. Each summer reader will receive a free book and certificate!
This year, the Nevada County Libraries are collaborating with the Nevada County Fair to offer extra goodies. Children who participate in the Summer Reading Program will receive vouchers that they can exchange for free ride tickets at the Fair. Throughout the summer, kids can decorate images of books that will be hung on book trees at a special exhibit at the Fair. The Nevada County Fair is also providing bookmarks for each child who signs up for the Summer Reading Program.
Sign-ups start June 21st at all library branches. A Kick-Off Event featuring Puppet Art Theater will be held at the Madelyn Helling Library on Tuesday, June 29, at 3:00 PM and at the Grass Valley Library on Wednesday, June 30, at 10:30 AM. The Celebration Party featuring Magic by Bill will be held on Wednesday, July 21, at the Grass Valley Library at 10:30 AM and at the Madelyn Helling Library at 1:30 PM.
All programs are free of charge. You are welcome to call with questions (265-1538 or 477-5790) or visit the library website for details (www.mynevadacounty.com/library/).
All Summer Reading Programming is very generously sponsored by the Friends of the Nevada County Libraries.
Study Finds Children Rely on French Fries, Juice to Meet Produce Consumption Recommendations
via: http://www.rwjf.org/childhoodobesity/digest.jsp?id=9758&;c=OTC-RSS&;attr=DI
A study published in the March issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association finds that french fries are the most common vegetable consumed by children, USA Today reports. Using data on over 6,500 children ages 2 and 18, researchers from Ohio State University determined that U.S. children consumed an average of just two cups of fruits, vegetables and juice each day. Adolescents consumed slightly more, averaging two-and-a-half cups per day. Although the researchers acknowledge that children continue to fall short of the federal nutritional guidelines of between two and six-and-a-half cups of fruits and vegetables each day, they note that consumption of such foods would have been far lower had the analysis not included consumption of french fries and juice drinks. Specifically, the researchers found that french fries accounted for about one-quarter of children’s vegetable intake, while juice accounted for 40 percent of children’s daily fruit intake. According to the analysis, children ages 12 and 18 had the highest intake of french fries, with boys and children from lower income families reporting the greatest consumption of both fruit juice and french fries, regardless of age. An analysis of the data by race and ethnicity found that non-Hispanic African-American children consumed more healthy dark-green vegetables and fewer deep-yellow vegetables than Mexican-American and non-Hispanic white children. Based on the findings, the researchers recommend that parents make an effort to incorporate more vegetables and fruits into their children’s diet (Hellmich, USA Today, 3/1/09; Lorson et al., Journal of the American Dietetic Association, March 2009 [registration required]).
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