The Fat Police

In 2010, Michelle Obama successfully pushed for the passage of the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kid's Act. The following year, the USDA redefined their requirements to ensure more healthy school lunches. This was an effort to combat childhood obesity. So far, it seems like like a pretty good idea, huh?

But problems mounted when kids were introduced to foreign substances like apples and carrots. Conditioned by years of Twinkies and Mountain Dew, the youngsters revolted at the idea of putting healthy food products through their developing digestive systems. Their biggest complaint was that fruits and vegetables simply lacked the flavor of their artificially-flavored counterparts.

In Wisconsin, school kids went as far as staging a "hunger strike" by boycotting the new school lunches. They viewed the confiscation of their Tastykakes and Doritos as cruel and unusual punishment from The Man (or the First Lady in this case). And in Kansas, in response to smaller portion sizes, schoolkids made a video suggesting that they weren't getting enough food. Make no bones about it, the kids are getting pissed.

Aside from the nutritional efforts to make kids healthier, there was also a "Play-60" initiative introduced a few years ago which encouraged kids to go outside and play for 60 minutes a day. That's right, in today's video-game dominated society, kids actually have to be encouraged to go outside and play.

The latest effort to build a healthier child comes to us from Los Angeles, where "fat letters" are being sent home to parents. Schools are sending these letters home to inform parents that their child is overweight. I guess the parents didn't notice at the family dinner at Burger King the night before? And how is the parent supposed to respond to the letter. Should they pull little Johnie from his X-Box and say, "Son, we don't know how to break this to you. You're fat?" Now, in addition to having an overweight kid, we're going to have a kid with self-esteem issues.

On a serious note, I agree that there's room for improvement in the overall health and fitness of today's kids. Each generation is becoming progressively less active. And modern kids get way too much "nutrition" from overly processed foods not only from places like McDonalds but from their own refrigerators. The big question in my mind is: Do we really need PSA's, letters from the school and Acts of Congress to make kids eat an apple or ride a bike? If we do, it's pretty sad......

kw