The U.Due south. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is proposing regulations to go along the nation'due south students from buying viscid bears, fruit roll-ups and cheese puffs from vending machines and at campus snack confined during the school solar day. Merely it would let high school students to buy 12-ounce sports drinks and 20-ounce diet sodas.

Photo courtesy of San Francisco Unified. Click to enlarge.

Photo courtesy of San Francisco Unified. (Click to enlarge)

The rules would apply just during the school solar day, allowing candy sales and other fundraisers to keep during not-school hours (half an hour afterward the schoolhouse mean solar day ends) and at off-campus events. A limited number of such fundraisers could occur during the school day, and parents would be able to pack whatever they choose in their children'south lunch numberless and bring cupcakes or other treats for special events such as birthdays.

The federal government for many years has adult regulations for food it subsidizes, such every bit free and reduced-price breakfasts and lunches. But this is the first fourth dimension it has proposed guidelines for food it does non support with federal funds. The Good for you, Hunger-Costless Kids Act of 2010, aimed at reducing childhood obesity and related diseases, requires the USDA to establish nutrition standards for all foods sold in schools.

"Parents and teachers piece of work hard to instill healthy eating habits in our kids, and these efforts should be supported when kids walk through the schoolhouse door," said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack in announcing a 60-24-hour interval flow for public comment, which is expected to begin sometime this week later on the text of the proposed dominion is published in the Federal Register.

The California Department of Education'south Nutrition Section is currently reviewing the 160-page document to determine whether the state needs to make any changes to its extensive regulations for "competitive foods" — those sold outside of the regular school meals. The proposed federal rules set a minimum standard, and states and local schools are allowed to take more stringent regulations.

In some areas, California has already implemented what the federal rules advise. For example, the federal proposal would eliminate foods with trans fats, which are linked to middle disease, a regulation California put in place in July 2009. In other areas, the land is stricter: California does non allow nutrition sodas or caffeinated drinks, which the federal proposal would allow in high schools. Nonetheless, California may take to brand some revisions.

The USDA based its guidelines, in office, on an Apr 2007 report past the Institute of Medicine, Nutrition Standards for Foods in Schools: Leading the Fashion toward Healthier Youth.

In an analysis of how closely states' regulations mirrored those promoted by the institute, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention institute that California's rules, though better than average, were still well beneath the institute'south guidelines. California scored above the national median of 25.6 points, with 41.v points out of 100. Hawaii'due south policies, rated at 70.5 points, were the closest.

All the same, the USDA is not recommending all of the institute's guidelines. For example, the institute's written report says sports drinks are appropriate for athletes and others engaged in rigorous physical action, merely non for all students. The USDA'south proposed regulation would brand no such distinction, allowing any high school student to buy the beverage. California currently allows the sale of sports drinks in both centre and high schools.

The goal of the federal regulations is to promote more fruit, vegetables and whole-grain foods. Snacks must be fruit, vegetables, a dairy product, a protein nutrient or a grain product that is at least l pct whole grain or has a whole grain as the first ingredient. It restricts fat, common salt and saccharide, and limits calories to 200 per item.

Nonetheless, the proposed rules would make exceptions for foods that contain 10 percentage of the daily value of a "naturally occurring nutrient" that is often missing from children's diets, such as calcium, potassium and fiber. The USDA is seeking comments on this provision, in particular, maxim information technology might be difficult for schoolhouse nutritionists to tell whether these nutrients are "naturally occurring" or added in (fortified) by a food processing company. Advocates for healthy school food are concerned that this could provide a loophole for the food industry.

The "naturally occurring" requirement "could be a fantastic development, preventing the otherwise inevitable 'Baked Flamin' Hot Cheetos, Now With 10% of Your Solar day'southward Fiber Requirement,'" writes Bettina Elias Siegel on her web log, "The Dejeuner Tray." Simply the USDA's asking for comments virtually whether this regulation should remain equally written has her worried.

The USDA is also seeking public input in the following areas:

  • Assuasive loftier schoolhouse students to accept caffeinated beverages. The USDA reasons that because such drinks are readily available to this age group, it wouldn't be applied to restrict them.
  • Assuasive 12-ounce milk cartons for secondary students because, fifty-fifty though this could contribute to obesity, most children exercise non drink enough milk.
  • Whether the federal authorities or the state governments should decide the number of fundraisers during the schoolhouse year that tin can include forbidden snacks.
  • Whether "accompaniments," such equally the cream cheese with the bagel or the dressing with the salad, should be counted in the total fat, sugar, common salt and calorie limits for the nutrient particular.

To review the proposed regulations, go here. After the proposal is listed on the Federal Annals, the public can make comments at world wide web.regulations.gov.

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