When many children returned to their classrooms this year, they were greeted with some new technology thanks to million dollar grants, according to an article in the New York Times on Tuesday. Schools across the nation were showcasing new computer labs and television monitors in each class to present the children with daily news, and even improved sports facilities.
The only thing that the students had to sacrifice was their personal health, as the millions of dollars were in the form of buyouts from soda and fast food companies.
This is already an accepted practice in high schools. In exchange for building new stadiums, vending machines are put into hallways. Students get thirsty between classes, and Coca-Cola becomes the easiest option. The students are also used for test marketing, where new products are offered at discount prices to gauge response. Without knowing it, students have become Coke-wielding soldiers of a new era of marketing.
Companies know where their markets lie and will do everything in their power to exploit those markets, as evidenced by moving their campaigns into the elementary school setting. When children are given liquid candy laced with caffeine, it quickly becomes their drink of choice. When children insist on having many sodas each day, they are contributing to the growing average weight of Americans.
In addition to being able to buy soda at all times of the day, breakfast and lunches are being sponsored by fast food corporations. In many households, a student will eat the first two meals of the day at school. These meals are efficient because they are very cheap and nutritious, as schools that comply with government standards receive benefits.
Recently, fast food companies have come in with more money than the government. Schools, particularly those in dire need of funding, take the extra money and inadvertently do a lot of damage to students. For many low-income families, the food being offered at school is the most affordable way to feed their kids, and as a result, their children are having junk food meals.
After being bombarded with images of fast food logos all day, it would be no surprise if kids come home and ask for more. As far as they are concerned, it is full of tasty sugar and fat, and they just don't know any better.
These companies are also starting to sponsor health lessons for kids, which is perhaps the mark of propaganda. Children are eating less healthy and in turn are less healthy later in life. Obesity leads to many diseases, such as diabetes, heart disease and high blood pressure, and is more prevalent in the United States than anywhere else in the world. Children led down this path by schools and corporations will only perpetuate this trend.
If there were ever a time for government intervention, it is now. Government funds are being outmatched, and private enterprise is beginning to run public institutions. The lack of governmental action has put the schools in this position in the first place, so our leaders must think about the best interest of future voters and take a stand.
If the government can put its money where its mouth is and shift the importance back to being healthy and making smart decisions, it will serve as a great lesson and example.
Childhood is the time when people acquire tastes and develop the eating habits they will carry for the rest of their lives. Although extra funding for schools is certainly desirable, improved school technology or grand stadiums are not worth the well-being of children. The health of children should not have a price tag.
