The school day just got healthier or hungrier??? While I believe that there was good intent behind the new guidelines for the National School Lunch and School Breakfast Programs, many kids are being left hungry.
With the only age taken into account to organize the structure of the guidelines, there has been a lot of controversy over them (found at: http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/governance/legislation/dietaryspecs.pdf). The guidelines were greatly supported by the First Lady as part of her Let’s Move! initiative to solve the problem of childhood obesity within a generation.
While it is commendable and certainly achievable to include more fruits and vegetables, low‐fat dairy products, more whole grains and more water the part of the guidelines that has been taking some criticism is the Meat category. Below is the breakdown:
Meats/Meat alternatives:
Grades K-5: 8 to 10 ounces per week
Grades 6-8: 9 to 10 ounces per week
Grades 9-12: 10 to 12 ounces per week
Nuts, tofu, cheese and eggs can be substituted for meat in some cases.
In some cases this may be accurate—for those children who are less active and need fewer calories to maintain a healthy body weight. However, as a physically active youngster this is not enough protein to sustain a growing body. With a strict structure like this one that does not allow for flexibility for those more active children, it is the case that we are creating a new problem by trying to correct another.
Beef and other meat sources should be the center of the school lunch program. It not only fills us up but it is also good for our brain!
If you are interested in learning more about the guidelines, go to http://www.fns.usda.gov/cnd/Lunch/
If you would like to share your thoughts with USDA please address the following:
Undersecretary of Food & Nutrition Services
Kevin Concannon
1400 Independence Ave, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250
Secretary of Agriculture
Tom Vilsack
1400 Independence Ave, SW
Washington, D.C. 20250
Eat Beef!!!
Kassie Curran
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Tags: Beef, healthy lifestyle, lean beef, Nutrition