As nachos, cheesy puffs and candy bars have taken over the average school lunch, child obesity rates in Arizona tripled over the past two decades to an all-time high of 15 percent, with only 2 percent of all children in the state meeting daily nutritional standards.
Gov. Janet Napolitano, along with her health policy adviser Sue Gerard and state school Superintendent Tom Horne, are attacking the problem by targeting vending machines. Though Napolitano and Gerard are behind a voluntary program to add more nutritious options to the snack slots, Horne has said he would go as far as banning the sale of anything considered unhealthy on campuses. While he scheduled to make recommendations for a voluntary measure to the state Board of Education within the next two months, proposing the absolute ban is still an option.
Unfortunately, it is also a nonsensical one.
Horne is not the only one interested in the all-out ban. The Mesa Unified School District has removed all vending machines in its elementary schools and is considering extending the measure to the middle school and high school levels, as well.
Simply ridding schools of vending machines and snack carts that provide students with concoctions of cellophane-wrapped sugar and fat will not automatically create healthier students. The only things such a ban will downsize are the wallets of districts dependent upon revenue from the snack sales.
Much of the "unhealthy food" is, in fact, coming straight from the cafeteria kitchens - which shouldn't be new or surprising information to school officials or governmental pundits.
According to a study last spring, over 55 percent of Arizona's schools fail to meet the U.S. Department of Agriculture standards, which dictate the amount of fat, calories, sodium, fiber and carbohydrates allowed per meal over the school year.
And although some districts like the Flagstaff Unified District and Glendale Elementary District actually fell short of the requirements, it's easy to see where others push gobs of fat into children's mouths. For instance, Tempe Unified Elementary District's french fries contain more than 38 percent of a child's daily fat allowance. And in the Scottsdale Unified School District, similar results were found; a student could eat two McDonald's burgers and get the same fat amount in one SUSD burger.
So the problem isn't one that can be solved simply by targeting vending machines and snack carts. Reform must take place in the cafeteria first before pulling out commercial sales.
Schools like those in the Phoenix Union High School District and Mesa Unified depend on that revenue. The $1.2 million PUHSD takes in and the $2 million Mesa Unified and SUSD each make annually in vending machine sales helps fund their food programs. The money's not being wasted, and it's certainly not chump change.
Yet, Horne doesn't seem to be too concerned with the effect the loss of income may have.
"There are better ways to get money than by pushing sugar," Horne told Capitol Media Services. He suggested that schools hold car washes.
But it's impractical to expect students and faculty to wash $2 million worth of cars for voluntary tips, especially when a proven revenue source like snack machines is already in place.
Although vending machines and snack carts may provide students with added junk food, they also help students through the school's use of the snack revenues. The possible implications of banning junk food sales altogether reach much further than the bellies of students.
After all, chips and candy from vending machines are not the only source of Arizona children's poor nutrition. Until Arizona school cafeterias begin to offer healthier options, the benefits of convenience food and vending machine revenues shouldn't be ignored.
Rosie Cisneros is a journalism sophomore. Reach her at rosie.cisneros@asu.edu.
