KIERA SCHOLTEN
Staff Writer
I was told as a child that too much sugar was bad for me. Though I wasn’t exactly sure why, it didn’t matter because I didn’t get to choose my food anyway. I needed permission to eat things like dessert or snacks. My parents have since let me make my own decisions regarding what goes into my body, but it seems I may now have others to instruct me.
America, especially health-conscious California, has recently become obsessed with good-food/bad-food lawmaking.
California Attorney General Bill Lockyer asked for a court order that would require several fast food chains and chip brands to place a warning label on products that may contain acrylamide, a chemical the state says can cause cancer. This claim has been disputed by some, who say there is no evidence that the products are carcinogenic. Whether these foods cause cancer, they are still unhealthy and anyone eating them is already taking a risk. Most people who consume foods like chips or fries eat them with the knowledge that they are not healthy — so let them choose.
Other instances of this focus in legislation are two bills by Sen. Martha Escutia (D – Calif.) that would limit the foods and drinks that schools can sell. The bills intend to make kids healthier. But will drinking a 12-ounce glass of juice that has 200 calories instead of a 12-ounce can of soda that has 150 calories really help a child slim down?
Some of the lawmaking is based on misconstrued ideas about nutrition: Do legislators know that non-fattening foods are not necessarily healthy and that some fattening foods are healthy? Even if the bills are a small improvement since they limit the sugar- and fat-laden foods that have been sold in schools for a long time, they might be even more effective if the lawmakers were actually experts in nutrition.
Parents could just pay more notice and pack their kids’ lunches, but children will not always have someone to regulate what they eat. If they don’t learn how to make good decisions about food now, they will be a part of America’s obesity problem later.
Debate has ensued recently over regulation of vitamins — something that seems far from controversial. The outcome could be as drastic as vitamins being regulated as much as prescription drugs, or simply that there would be more detailed labeling on supplements. Vitamins, formerly considered vital to a healthy person’s daily regimen, are now suggested for use only when food does not provide sufficient vitamins and minerals.
With so much controversy over the things that we consume, do we even know what is healthy and what is not?
Perhaps the steps lawmakers are making are ultimately beneficial as a response to America’s growing obesity. But when no one seems to know for certain what defines healthy, couldn’t our personal choices be just as effective? I am no longer 5 years old. I have lived 20 years learning what is good for my body and what is not. So why is it that lawmakers think they must still remind me?
The result of America’s obesity is more a result of bad decision-making. But lawmakers may be teaching an audience that is not willing to change. The knowledge is out there, but the application is not. It may be time for these parents to let go and just hope that their children make good choices.
While lawmakers spend their time on more worthwhile conquests, we, as capable citizens, can do our part to decrease the rising prevalence of obesity in America. It is time for all of us to begin acting like responsible adults or else we will be treated like children — by the government.
09-15-2005