I know I’m not supposed to be blogging daily anymore (to preserve my health and sanity), but it just doesn’t feel right not to share with you some of the many interesting articles and links that come across my screen at a rapid clip each day. Lately, though, I’ve been playing catch-up on life – [...]
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In March, 2011 I was honored to be chosen as one of the winners of a Slate magazine anti-childhood-obesity crowd-sourcing contest. My submission, entitled “Legislate, Educate and Inoculate to Create Food-Savvy Kids,” argued that we need to fight the problem on three fronts: legislation to curb the food industry’s rampant advertising to children; widespread nutrition [...]
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With the closing of USDA’s period for public comment on the new proposed competitive food rules, we’ve had a lot of discussion here about the food and beverages offered to school kids via vending machines, school stores, and cafeteria snack bar or “a la carte” lines. But what about the many other ways in which [...]
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TLT reader and friend Mara sent me this interesting story from NPR’s The Salt blog which indicates that there could be a surprising link between skim milk consumption and excess weight gain in childhood. A new study, which looked at 10,700 American children, found that preschoolers who drank 1% or skim milk had, on average, higher body [...]
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Food activist Nancy Huehnergarth tweeted this troubling Dairy Reporter item last Friday, which indicates that the International Dairy Foods Association (IDFA) and the National Milk Producers Federation (NMPF) are asking the Food & Drug Administration for permission to add aspartame and other artificial sweeteners to the flavored milk sold in U.S. schools without certain front-label disclosures. [...]
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Just a quick post today to tell you about a neat program going on here in Houston in which high schoolers teach other kids about the benefits of healthy eating and regular exercise. A few weeks ago a student named Pallavi Dev wrote to tell me about “H5H,” or “High Five for Health,” a program using [...]
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I’m excited to share with you today a new children’s book all about one of TLT’s favorite topics, school food. Written for children aged 9-12, What’s For Lunch?: How Schoolchildren Eat Around the World looks at meals from Kenya to Afghanistan, Russia to Brazil. But the book is more than just a collection of interesting photos; rather, author Andrea [...]
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I wanted to share with you a very good article in an upcoming issue of The Nation which assesses the progress – or lack thereof – made by Michelle Obama’s Let’s Move! initiative in combating childhood obesity. In a balanced and thorough assessment of the First Lady’s efforts, the article highlights both her early gains [...]
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As many of you know, the new USDA “competitive food” rules are due to be released before the end of this year (though likely after the presidential election.) These rules will regulate all food offered on school campuses apart from the federal school meal, i.e., food from vending machines, school stores, fundraisers, and the school’s [...]
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Last spring on TLT’s Facebook page many of us expressed interest in a new book called Portion Size Me: A Kid-Driven Plan to a Healthier Family. Written by then-12-year-old Marshall Reid and his mother, Alexandra (Alex), Portion Size Me chronicles one family’s attempt to adopt a healthier lifestyle. The catalyst for the project was Marshall who, at [...]
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