Healthy Vending Machines and the Let's Move Campaign: Perfect Partners to Battle Childhood Obesity

Healthy Vending Machines and the Let's Move Campaign: Perfect Partners to Battle Childhood Obesity

If your observations match the current state of child health in America, you should spot one obese child in every three children you see. According to the Let's Move! Campaign website, if we continue along the same detrimental trajectory we are currently on, one out of every three children born in the year 2000 or later will suffer from diabetes at some point in their lives. This is a shocking and sobering statistic. We are currently killing our kids with the food they are consuming.

Childhood obesity has reached unprecedented levels. An obese child is considered to be a child that is at or above the 95th percentile of body mass index according to standards collected by the National Survey of Children's health. In the past 30 years, rates of childhood obesity have tripled. Obesity rates of students aged 6 to 11 increased from 6.5% in 1980 to 19.6% in 2008. Among adolescents aged 12 to 19 years, the change was 5% to 18.1% over the same period. During the launch of her Let's Move! campaign, Michelle Obama said, "A recent study put the health care cost of obesity-related diseases at $147 billion a year."

147 billion per year. To put that number in perspective, it would require 3,800,979 average Americans to spend all of their annual income on battling obesity just to break even. 3,800,979 of us per year could take turns paying for the ridiculously high cost of fatty happy meals, or we could begin to resolve the problem by providing an easy solution: healthy vending machines.

Michelle Obama's campaign was introduced in early 2010, followed by President Obama's new nutrition bill, The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act 2010. These two initiatives strive to improve the standard of nutrition that is readily available to students on a daily basis. As Michelle Obama said at the Let's Move! Launch on February 9, 2010,"The physical and emotional health of an entire generation and the economic health and security of our nation is at stake." This is truly our children's futures that we have the ability to change, and it all begins with the simple steps that can be implemented through improved lunch programs and healthy vending options. Since children spend a large part of their day at school, it is imperative that both the lunches and the snacks they are consuming have nutritional value.

There are two main problems with fixing students' diets, however. The first is a matter of preference: students who are accustomed to eating pizza, fries, and chips tend to turn their noses up when offered a carrot stick. Here's where healthy vending can help: it provides easy access to snacks that a similar to those students already like (like air-popped PopChips rather than fried Lay's), but with the best nutritional value possible. Additionally, by eliminating specific choices from vending machines (like soda), schools can prompt healthier diets merely by providing convenient alternatives. If it's not there, students won't consume it.

The second issue is a matter of cost. Schools aren't deliberately trying to fatten students up, but it is significantly more expensive for them to provide nutritious meals. As anyone who grocery shops knows, fresh vegetables and fruits are quite expensive. When schools have to consider preparing hundreds and hundreds of meals, cost becomes the crucial issue. They also need food that isn't quickly perishable, meaning it will usually come in a can. This means the food can be loaded with preservatives, be less nutritious and have higher sodium and fat content.

When you take into consideration the sheer scale at which schools have to produce these meals, and also the tradeoffs they must consider in order to upgrade to healthier alternatives, it's no wonder that schools go for the cheaper, less nutritious options.

Thankfully, the new bill helps alleviate some of the pressure of school nutrition programs. It increases the amount of money to be allocated to the National School Lunch program, which will be an increase of around 6 cents per child in each district. Though it may not sound like much, this is an incredible step forward for governmental support of school nutrition. Furthermore, the Let's Move! campaign advocates better overall nutrition at home and more movement throughout the day, and calls for easier access to healthy foods. Once again, healthy vending can be part of the solution. Many healthy vending companies offer low-cost or even free placement of machines in schools, allowing schools to make considerable profits while providing healthy alternatives to their students. Healthy vending solves two problems: diminished school budgets and widening student waistlines. It's a win-win situation.

Healthy eating begins with education-both because children need to know what they should be eating, and also because they spend so much of their time at school. It's time for a change, and healthy vending machines are one easy way to implement the changes that will revolutionize the futures of generations of young Americans.

To secure your free $2,000 cash grant for supporting the Let's Move Campaign click:Healthy Vending Machines.

A Lydens is an expert vending correspondent forhttp://healthyvending.com, the world's most innovative, 100% healthy vending and nutrition company.

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