Preview

Vending Machines in Schools

Good Essays
Open Document
Open Document
787 Words
Grammar
Grammar
Plagiarism
Plagiarism
Writing
Writing
Score
Score
Vending Machines in Schools
Vending Machines in Schools With approximately 17% of children between the ages of 2-19 being obese, why are we allowing our schools to provide vending machines that are full of junk food to our children? The fact is, schools are terribly underfunded and the vending machines offer them a profit stream they need for their budget. Schools are using the profits from the vending machines for after school activities, computer, school programs, etc. The problem isn’t really the vending machines themselves; it’s what is being put in them. Sugary soft drinks, candy bars and chips are the leading sellers in these vending machines. Since most vending machines in schools contain foods that are nutritionally empty and calorie dense, the kids routinely eat these junk foods. Making poor food choices can lead them down a path to obesity, diabetes and other health problems. Childhood obesity can also lead to poor self-esteem and depression. Parents are sending money with their children for a nutritious lunch but with vending machines being so easily accessible there is no control over whether their child is going to pick school lunch or something out of the vending machine. Quick, convenient and tasty junk food selections from vending machines are discouraging children from making healthy food choices. It doesn’t matter how much parents encourage healthy eating at home, many younger children do not have the discipline to choose an apple over candy or chips. There is also a lack in physical activity not only during school but after school as well. Many public schools are eliminating the physical education part of schools due to budget cuts. Children are not learning how to be physically active and then they go home to watch tv or play on the computer. Eating poorly and lack of excersise is causing the obesity rates to skyrocket. In 1995, researchers predeicted that nearly all Americans would be overweight by the year 2030 if current trends continue (Dalton, 1). Its hard


Cited: Cynthia Ogden, Ph.D., and Margaret Carroll, M.S.P.H. http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/data/hestat/obesity_child_07_08/obesity_child_07_08.htm. 4 June 2010. Dalton, Sharron. Our Overweight Children. Berkeley and Los Angeles: University of California Press, 2004. Poppendieck, Janet. Free for All. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2009.
Continue Reading
View Writing Issues

You May Also Find These Documents Helpful

  • Satisfactory Essays

    Should Pop And Candy Machines Be Allowed In Schools Persuasive Letter
    • 501 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Should Pop And Candy Machines Be Allowed In Schools Persuasive Letter

    Imagine that you were sitting in a meeting or in different meetings all day and you only have one chance to eat in between meetings? As an adult it might be different for you, but as a teenager we need more food in our bodies as we grow. How are we supposed to pay attention in class if all we can think about food and candy? That’s what I am going to talk to you about in this letter, why pop and candy machines should be allowed in schools. As a growing teenage girl, I believe that snack and pop machines should be allowed in schools.…

    • 501 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Junk Food In Schools
    • 1436 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Junk Food In Schools

    Junk Food is a vast contributor to the increasing levels of diabetes, and other chronic conditions and diseases in America. In order to establish a healthy country, Americans must alter eating habits and establish knowledge within our nation’s children. The beverage and food industry spend billions of dollars annually to promote its products to children. Public institutions promote these products to increase revenue for school needed activities. This continuous, unhealthy cycle is in adversely affecting the nation. It’s time to raise the bar and set a higher standard for nutritional value in our nation, starting with in our school organization. Abolishing sugary snacks and inaugurating health eating habits will benefit children’s health,…

    • 1436 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Don T Blame The Eater Analysis
    • 1390 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Don T Blame The Eater Analysis

    David Barboza’s article “If You Pitch It, They Will Eat” states that “Now it’s Nickelodeon, movies, video games, the Internet and even marketing in schools.” So even as a parent you can’t make your kids stop watching TV or do anything about schools promoting fast food. Even if the parents send their kids with healthy foods they would still prefer to eat fast food like McDonald's or Pizza Hut. Exercising does help you stay healthy but watching TV or playing video games all day doesn’t necessarily make you gain weight because most people when playing video games become really focused on the game and forget to eat and keep on playing without wanting to get up and eat junk food. According to Barboza’s article “According to a survey by the C.D.C., about 20 percent of the nation’s schools now offer brand-name fast food.” So it would be very difficult for a parent to keep their child unexposed to the campaigns that these fast food industries are targeting at kids. In certain cases obese children exercise a lot yet they are still not able to lose weight. The parents can’t be to blame because just about everything is unhealthy except vegetables and even now there have been studies that processed meat can lead to cancer and even vegetables contain GMOs and other things. Even some…

    • 1390 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Pros And Cons Of Vending Machines In Middle School
    • 126 Words
    • 1 Page

    Pros And Cons Of Vending Machines In Middle School

    Will the removal of vending machines in schools lessen the likeliness of student obesity? Maybe, maybe not. I for one do not recall using a vending machine or even seeing one in middle school. However, I do recall students lugging around family-sized chip bags and dispersing them as if they were running a mobile grocery store. In the absence of vending machines, I don't see where students will get the incentive to eat healthier and be more active. It may seem like a helpful method, but, in reality, not so much. Perhaps if they reintroduced vending machines but with healthier options and cheaper prices, they might draw students in. Personally, I wouldn't shy away from purchasing a healthier vending option if it was a reasonable…

    • 126 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Should Vending Machines Be Allowed In School
    • 209 Words
    • 1 Page

    Should Vending Machines Be Allowed In School

    Secondly,kids would have a bad diet because only unhealthy food is in vending machines.Students would also gain overweight.That would…

    • 209 Words
    • 1 Page
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Fast Food Nation Argument Analysis
    • 652 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Fast Food Nation Argument Analysis

    I am currently a student at Delphos Jefferson Senior High School, and we recently read Fast Food Nation by Eric Schlosser in our senior English class. It is a nonfiction novel that discusses the dark side of American fast food. As we’ve been reading, I’ve realized that a large amount of students at Jefferson Senior High drink soda purchased at school-offered vending machines. While these students are young adults and can make their own health related decisions, our responsibility as a school is to ensure that students receive healthy treatment. I understand that soda machines offered in our school are under the circumstances of corporate advertising; a practice that grants our school extra money towards general funds.…

    • 652 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Best Essays

    Executive Summary on Childhood Obesity
    • 1245 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Executive Summary on Childhood Obesity

    Childhood obesity is one of the root causes affecting millions of young population today. The health effects related to Childhood Obesity are devastating. At least 70% of obese children between the age groups of 5 to 17 suffer from at least one cardiovascular disease (CDC – 2012). Obese children are prone to pre-diabetic conditions with continued risk of progressive diabetes. However, it is possible to reverse this epidemic if all the healthcare organizations, schools, and communities work together aggressively by formulating a program that promotes strategies and methodologies in battling childhood obesity. These programs educate and assist communities in promoting eating right, exercising, and outdoor activities for living healthy lifestyle. Healthcare organizations, communities, and both private as well as public sectors need to step up in battling childhood obesity (Abigail Arons, Jan 2011). However, such special programs cost significant amount of money, resources, and time.…

    • 1245 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Best Essays
    Read More
  • Satisfactory Essays

    Persuasive School Lunches
    • 457 Words
    • 2 Pages

    Persuasive School Lunches

    Close your eyes and think about the school lunches you’ve had through the years. The nasty, runny, cheese on your nachos; the over cooked pizza, fries, and hamburgers... Now think about how it would feel to waltz into lunch knowing you could have Taco Bell, Mc Donald’s, or Pizza Hut everyday. It sounds pretty fantastic, right? Wrong. Children, and quite a few adults, sadly don’t realize what fast food can do to your body. The easy availability of fast food in school lunch rooms would cause a large increase in childhood obesity.…

    • 457 Words
    • 2 Pages
    Satisfactory Essays
    Read More
  • Powerful Essays

    Exploratory Paper
    • 1225 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Exploratory Paper

    It is not surprising that Los Angeles and many school districts in the country have been introducing strict bans on unhealthy foods due to an alarming problem with childhood obesity. The problem became more apparent when a national study conducted by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) found that one in three American children attending public schools were reported to be obese (Chase, par. 7). Most of the blame for the alarming ratio of student obesity was directed to “junk” foods and sedentary activity. In response, Los Angeles schools and many other schools in the country have made it a mission to offer their students healthier menus and encourage good eating habits largely by banning food items that are deemed unhealthy.…

    • 1225 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Powerful Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Unhealthy School Lunches
    • 1780 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Unhealthy School Lunches

    Students do not deserve to eat and pay for food that contains large amounts of carbohydrates, sodium, and sugar that does more harm to the body than good. Think about it, ingesting these fast food meals every day that makes you more prone to having acne, bloating, and weight gain. The more serious health conditions that these lunches could also cause are diabetes, obesity, kidney disease, and even depression. Statistics on unhealthy school lunches have been conducted by experts on health. According to Unhealthy School Lunches Statistics, the University of Michigan Health System reported from their study that “children who eat school lunches may have higher bad cholesterol or LDL than kids who bring their lunch along with them.” (University of Michigan Health System). Students who eat school lunches are unintentionally hurting their health by increasing their chances of getting serious and damaging health conditions. This emphasizes the need to replace the foods in school lunches with healthier foods in order to prevent the chances of us getting health conditions. Another piece of statistics recorded for this study states how students who eat lunches at school end up receiving less physical exercises compared to students with packed lunches. In Unhealthy School Lunches Statistics, it states that “Students who ate school lunches were less likely to participate in active sports activities like football and basketball, moderate exercises like walking, and team sports than those students who brought lunch along with them.” This information reveals many unavoidable patterns on students’ lifestyle. Not only do these detrimental lunches affect student’s health, they also affect students’ activeness, making this issue more serious. Shouldn’t we try to fix this issue to allow help improve students’…

    • 1780 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Preventing Obesity In America
    • 847 Words
    • 4 Pages

    Preventing Obesity In America

    To offer healthier options in schools vending machines and lunch options for students can influence their behaviors into what they put into their body on a daily basis. In addition, due to the growing technologies many people are walking less using cars, buses, and escalators, to get from one place to another. Therefore, environmental changes in the transportation systems and by having more stairs and sidewalk can allow people to walk more and to get their daily exercise they need in order to prevent from being obese. As Wexler stated, “ Policy makers were exhorted to create more community-based obesity prevention and treatment programs... They also were advised to enact public policy to create and maintain safe and accessible sidewalks, walking and bicycle paths, and stairs.” (Wexler 2007) However, the disadvantages that environmental changes follow by can be due to the limiting resources such as land to provide sidewalk in a community, or providing fresh produce to students due to funding of the school lunches programs or limiting access for fresh produce.…

    • 847 Words
    • 4 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Better Essays

    Obesity in America.
    • 1991 Words
    • 8 Pages

    Obesity in America.

    Childhood obesity is a huge health problem in United States that affects about 12.5 million children and teens in this country alone. Since 1960 scientist have been monitoring obesity problem in United States and between 1980’s and 1990’s they have seen a drastic increase in childhood obesity from about 5% to sky high 15% which is a concerning number for young people. There are many different reasons why young people develop obesity in this country. The major reason why children become overweight is a bad food diet, eating fast food and not exercising enough throughout the day. Today’s lifestyle and technology allows people to buy food quickly at local fast food places, it is quick, convenient and cheap. Most people do not have time to come home after all day at work and cook a fresh and healthy dinner for the family. It is easier to stop at “Kentucky Fried Chicken” for example and buy dinner for entire family for under $25 which is almost impossible to do at home. Access for children to fast food places is easier than ever before, and most beverages that young people drink contain High Fructose Corn Syrup that replaced sugar in the 1970’s but causes young people to gain weight as fast as sugar does. Biggest problem in childhood obesity is definitely the food choices that we make for us and our children but also we cannot forget about the lack of exercise, most people do not get enough exercise so they stay healthy and become over weight. Also school nutrition’s should be friendlier to healthy diets and fruits instead of vending machines. Childhood obesity is a growing problem in America and it seems that it is not going away but in fact it might get bigger in near future if we do not do anything about it. With better food choices, more exercise and help from the government we can overcome this growing epidemic in USA.…

    • 1991 Words
    • 8 Pages
    Better Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Type Two Diabetes
    • 1196 Words
    • 5 Pages

    Type Two Diabetes

    Families are becoming more and more lazy which influences their kids into less activities, which can lead to obesity, and early childhood problems. Schools play a key role in how a child’s weight is maintained for example, schools should have good physical exercising classes, and a well balanced meals during school hours. Michelle Obama the former first lady of the United States made school lunches healthy, she removed fatty foods that were located in…

    • 1196 Words
    • 5 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More
  • Best Essays

    Persuasive Essay On Type 1 Diabetes
    • 1439 Words
    • 6 Pages

    Persuasive Essay On Type 1 Diabetes

    There is a dramatic increase in the number of children who are being affected by diabetes and obesity in America. Sugary drinks and unhealthy snacks should be taken out of the vending machines in schools and replaced with healthier choices to help stop this dangerous trend. Some may argue that taking out the options it is taking away a student’s right to choose, however, by taking away the sugary drinks and snacks, healthy habits are encouraged, future diseases are avoided, and a healthier generation is brought…

    • 1439 Words
    • 6 Pages
    Best Essays
    Read More
  • Good Essays

    Healthier School Lunches
    • 564 Words
    • 3 Pages

    Healthier School Lunches

    Junk food is a major cause of childhood obesity. Writer Bob notes that today, about one in three American kids and teens is overweight or obese, nearly triple the rate in 1963 (Bob, 1). The bad food offered in public schools contributes to this unacceptable problem. A single 12-ounce can of soda has as much as 13 teaspoons of sugar in the form of high-fructose corn syrup. Many of these sodas are available to kids in school at low prices as well as many other completely unhealthy foods like chips and cookies Due to the lack of fresh and flavorful food, many students will choose to buy the cheap junk food offered instead. If we could stock vending machines and cafeterias with healthier foods, it would definitely make a dent in the childhood obesity rate.…

    • 564 Words
    • 3 Pages
    Good Essays
    Read More

Related Topics