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THE GOVERNMENT HAS an €8.5-million-a-year quango called Safefood that has been running a substantial public awareness campaign of late around the area of preventing obesity in childhood. You might have noticed some of their big billboard advertisements, pointing out the amount of sugar in a dilutable drinks or advising parents to “Just say no” to children begging for sweets.
As Safefood and other research has pointed out, about 60 per cent of Irish adults are obese or overweight; and the costs of obesity to the economy stand at around €1.9 billion per year. This is rising fast as we raise generations of ever fatter children.
Most of us don’t need to re-hear a lecture on the bad news that comes with being overweight or obese. It’s a fast way to an early grave in the worst cases, and a recipe for storing up various troubles for even those of us who fight a more modest Battle of the Bulge.
The younger problems start, the worse they’ll be – it’s common sense. And,as well as affecting the quality of life of those directly affected, it wreaks additional and unnecessary costs onto a healthcare system that is already struggling to deal with the massive influx of elderly as our population gets older.
Safefood and other bodies have been working on public awareness campaigns and pushing for celebrities to stop advertising sugary drinks and shops to remove sweets from the checkout isle. They are attempting to get people to change their behaviours, something that’s difficult to do.
The Department of Education is also attempting to tackle this problem, by promoting some further physical education in schools and presumably by having more stern lectures be given to kids about how they need to eat more apples.
The Department has stopped short, however, of taking a real and concrete step that would reduce the amount of junk food eaten by children in schools: banning junk food vending machines from schools.
Just like sweets at checkouts, these vending machines are well-positioned to deliver a strong commercial return, and the money raised by vending machines in schools are becoming a vital source of income in our chronically underfunded school system.
At the stroke of a pen we could remove vending machines from our schools, doing more to actually reduce the intake of fizzy drinks, chocolate and crisps that any number of informative leaflets and visits from health experts could discourage. But both the Minister for Education and the Minister for Children have demurred, claiming that they would issue ‘guidelines’ to schools but that they couldn’t possibly dictate to schools what goes in vending machines.
I find that a little bit of a cop out. The Minister for Education can dictate quite a bit to schools when it suits him, but on this matter of the health of our children he’s apparently powerless.
Issuing guidelines is the bureaucratic way of making work. The actual results of these guidelines will never be properly measured, mainly because they’re useless. You can’t walk up to a set of guidelines, pop in a two euro coin and get a 330ml can with enough sugar to help a kid along the way to an early and expensive death.
Schools are in a bind. The Department of Education ensures that its union buddies are well looked after, but for many schools the money they receive to actually keep the lights on falls well short of what’s needed. That’s why schools tap parents for so much money in ‘voluntary’ subscriptions each year. Vending machines are another source of much-needed cash in the battle to keep a school building operating.
The short-term win is money that helps the Department of Education paper-over the cracks in a sick education budget. The long-term cost is exponentially increasing costs in the Department of Health and in the economy generally. Every euro schools make from this stuff could be costing two, three or more in future costs. Penny wise, pound foolish.
It’s simple common sense. When I was in primary school we were barred from having fizzy drinks or sweets in our lunch boxes, except on special days at the end of terms for Christmas or the Summer holidays. When I went to secondary school, we had a canteen that sold all the good stuff. It probably won’t surprise you to know that the weekly intake of cans of coke and twix bars went up in secondary school.
The Department of Education and the Minister for Children respectively should be braver in their convictions and go ahead and bar sweet sales in schools. I’d almost go as far as to suggest that they take the unilateral decision that my very wise primary school did and adopt a policy of no sweets whatsoever in schools. If they can confiscate mobile phones and the like, they can confiscate cans of coke and at least reduce consumption from the levels it stands at when the school is actively making money from the sale of crap.
We know that excessive consumption of junk food is bad news. We are breaking our hearts trying to educate people about the dangers and change their behaviours. Our children are at the highest risk of developing long-term problems, and we are focusing on them in particular.
Why the hell then are we allowing the sale of the thing we think is so bad for them in school walls? G’wan, dear government; take a brave decision.
Aaron McKenna is a businessman and a columnist for TheJournal.ie. He is also involved in activism in his local area. You can find out more about him at aaronmckenna.com or follow him on Twitter @aaronmckenna. To read more columns by Aaron click here.
Every school morning when I bring my son to school, I see children walking in eating sausage rolls, jambons etc. The parents need to ensure their child is fed at home before leaving for school.
Same here. Line of kids walking from nearest filling station eating sausage rolls loaded with red sauce.
I’d say the author has been in a fair few tuck shops in is time.
Are these kids obese or of normal weight?
Ive seen a few eating ‘said’ food but none of them were obese or overweight…
Everything in moderation …
Eating sausage rolls or jambons before school might not be because they haven’t eaten ….. I would eat my breakfast then go to college and get a few sausage rolls never been obese in my life. I think it’s more to do with sitting inside on consoles with headphones on and never leaving the house to have face to face interaction with other people.
How about parents get their children out of the room with the xbox & ipad and get them into the outdoors & sports.
My generation were one if the last to only go home when dinner was ready
We didn’t need an xbox a couple of sticks shaped like guns and a tire swing was all we needed
How dare you suggest parents do something for their children! This is the Gubernants fault!
People want the government to fix vending machines but at that the same time want them to stop taking their money off them… i want the government to fix the loose slates on my roof.
My children need their haircuts. Government should be made cut hair or at least subsidise it so I can stay here, smoke my JPB and watch sky. U seen the rain outside?
They should also subsidise the rickshaw to take you there… you can’t be expected to get your feet wet – you could get verrucas and then where would you be?.. or at least give you a voucher to get free wellington boots.
“Watch obesity plummet” ….. Catchy, tabloid style title- but sadly it just isn’t that easy in the real world – if we banned every school tuck shop in the country , with what we understand about how people behave – there is absolutely nothing that suggests that this would actually “stop obesity ” at all
an overhaul to Physical education for kids in Ireland , especially levels of participation , will go a lot further , Irish classes every day , religion classes every day but physical classes once a week , if the Irish approach of the fitness of young adults was overhauled and seriously addressed – you might be able to make claims like obesity will plummet – but otherwise it’s just a wildly exaggerated claim , sure as part of the overall approach limiting availability of crap during school hours might help , though it my opinion they will just stop for junk food on the way to and from schools instead —-the suggestion most likely won’t get to the route of the problem at all.
I want the Govt to Leave me the FUK alone!! The Govt is not your mummy and its not your daddy,sugar or otherwise either.Seems people have become utter cry babies these days with everything in their lives expecting Nanny State to sort it out for them. Try doing something for yourselves people.
It’s a great place to start. My blood is still boiling over the ridiculous stance taken by government in relation to vending machines. As per usual, they don’t care about the children, they only care about the money. What the eejits forget is the long term cost to the health service of obesity and diabetes.
Be doing better to do a lot more pe in schools and for parents to take responseabilty for there kids. Stop feeding them crap processed food and letting them sit in there bedrooms playing video games.
Agree totally with the article.
Strange how the state can be so impotent on some issues. Banning vending machines should be straight forward.
We’ve banned smoking in the work place.
We can ball out banks.
We regulate the sale of alcohol.
Why can’t the dept of health and education get together and reward schools for not having vending machines?
For every euro the school would make on vending machines let dept health give 2 euro.
And by the same token fine the school by the same amount if they don’t comply.
It would be the cheapest investment the dept of health could make in health education.
Come on quinn and reilly grow a pair.
Its not the governments role to ban vending machines.. where do we go then? – ban full fat milk? why not ban sugar altogether – personal responsibility is the key.
Everytime there is a problem in this country people like Bruce go crying to their mammy… in this case mammy is replaced with the government… people can never disentangle themselves from the apron strings… it is individual schools, parents and teachers who do these sort of initiatives why bring in the bumbling government – why are people afraid to do something for themselves?
@hound – lets blame the government for everything. Child drinks 2l of coke – governments fault. Child does not eat vegetables – governments fault. Maths too hard – governments fault.
Parents get away with so much.
100% Tatalagia was a pimp he never could have outfought Santino…I never knew till this day that it was Bazalini all along.
@hound like it or not the state has to carry the can for the effects of obesity. Therfore has – or should have – a vested interest in tackling the issue.
Perhaps my use of the word “ban” was extreme. My view is the state could encourage schools to take vending machines out of schools. The principle reason schools have them is because they generate needed funds.
Clearly this in itself will not resolve the obesity issue alone but it will create a better chance of children rebalancing their diet.
And yes I accept that parents are the primary educator of children in this regard.
In 1974 the abandonment of Breton Woods led to a debt based monetary system. All new money is created as debt. By the early 1980′s three trends became evident.
The quantities of new currency being created was increasing.
Banking experienced rapid growth.
Rates of obesity were increasing initially in the USA.
A new logic emerged at national and household levels. Permitting consumption to outpace production is not only acceptable but right and a right.
It is no coincidence they we simultaneously addressing the problems of debt bloated economies and obesity.
http://millionairemommynextdoor.com/2010/01/what-science-says-about-debt-and-obesity/
The only thing removing vending machines from schools ensures is that that the teenagers spend their money in a shop on the way to school instead. Does anyone really believe that anything else will happen?
The simple solution is to get rid of breakfast cereals. They are singularly the biggest cause of obesity as they are all sugar. They are worthless by and large and we need to regulate them strictly.
@Drew Clarke Complete rubbish, I lived on breakfast cereals as a kid and there wasn’t a pick on me.
Actually, it’s established fact Hugh. If there wasn’t a pick on you maybe it was because you were active
Is there any aspect at all of a child’s development that we can hold parents responsible for? I’m tired of reading articles blaming schools and teachers for not doing the parent’s job!
I think it’s too easy to blame vending machines and tuck shops. All of this was available when I was in school and there wasn’t a massive obesity problem. And I finished school 21 years ago! If teenagers want to buy sweets, they’ll buy them on the way to school if they’re not available in school. If parents cook healthy and nutritious meals every day (as they should), it won’t matter if their children eat a bar of chocolate every day. My teenagers bring a Mars bar or Snickers to school every day as PART of their lunch. They also have a sandwich and fruit. They’re 17 and 15 and there isn’t a pick on them. The problem is the availability and use of processed foods versus fresh food and the sedentary lifestyle a lot of young child live today.
*children*
J’ACCUSE!!
Exactly right. Prohibition doesn’t work. Even with kids.
How about we scrap religion classes altogether and replace it with more PE.
Replace it with the goonies?
How about they change the way a vending machine works. When you go up to a vending machine to buy a Mars bar it immediately triangulates your height & weight.
If it declares you overweight it gives you an electric shock when you press the buy Mars bar button and if u are not overweight it rewards you with a Mars bar and a catchy jingle like -”congratulations – u deserve this”
Love it.
Bully the thin kids into buying the Mars bar
Banning vending machines and tuck shops would merely drive the demand underground. You’d see a huge increase in people dealing Coke, kids taking sherbet in the jacks etc….
Parents have to take responsibility for childhood obesity.
Parents are the problem – look at their diets and then tackle the kids… kids don’t work to earn money to buy their own treats.
Why doesn’t the department approach real food companies to provide healthy snacks via refrigerated vending machines? Ready to eat prepackaged fruit and veggies, yogurt, smoothies etc. I know they aren’t perfect but better than the alternative and if they are the only thing available kids will eat them. God knows mine would eat sweets all day if they are there but they’ll grab an apple if that’s what’s under their nose!
The kids won’t buy fruit from a vending machine when they can bring it from home for free. They’ll just buy their sweets in a shop on their way to school. Our obesity problem is not going to go away because vending machines are no longer available in schools.
Lisa why don’t you contact your local Principal or better still get like minded parents, approach the school together with teachers with your ideas and effect change that way -what are you waiting for?
Luckily the school my kids go to doesn’t have vending machines so that’s not necessary but I would bring it up if it was proposed. And of course there is no cure all, just small steps that make it easy to make better decisions.
Still though you can’t beat a Curly Wurly.
Is that what you call it.
Good man Aaron. Blame the government. Again. How about parents take responsibility. Have ground rules. Actually make the kids lunch rather than give money. Nah, bash the government. What party did you say you represent?
Not having vending machines selling this stuff within school walls would reduce consumption. That’s the purpose of these ad campaigns and other health initiatives we’re undertaking.
The government has demurred from taking an actual concrete step to help reduce (not eliminate) consumption. Easier access drives consumption. That’s why shops put so much effort into merchandising sweets at checkouts.
So yeah, they’re to blame on this one.
Having massive anti-excessive junk food campaigns on the left hand while actively making money on the right hand selling the stuff doesn’t make sense.
Aaron you”re advocating a nanny state in its most extreme form – what you advocate is personal responsibility be removed from the equation. It is easier to blame government then attack the parents who allow their kids to buy this stuff… its not vending machines that are making kids fat – its the amount of junk they eat in the home. for their dinners etc etc. One or two sweets a day does not make kids fat… its processed food, no exercise, excessive XBOX, chips every night etc etc etc…. this is a complete red herring.
You should be talking about the problem of parents education not whether or not kids can buy a Mars Bar from a vending machine.
Aaron, every shop that teenagers pass on their way to school sell sweets. Do you honestly believe that they won’t buy their sweets on the way to school instead?
I believe that the easier we make it to buy a product, the more the product will be purchased (it’s also what I do every day in my professional life – albeit not with sweets… But the principle applies).
It depends on how much elasticity there is in the demand – If the school is next door to a newsagents, maybe all the demand would go there. Then again, maybe you’d cut out a few cans of coke bought on the way between classes. If the school is a five minute walk from a shop, and kids get a ten minute break at 11am (such as at the secondary school I went to), no vending machine would certainly drop demand. If it’s a school in the middle of nowhere… Etc.
As for parental responsibility, I agree. Vending machines in school is just one part of the deal. But it is an area where we can take an actual concrete step to remove demand generating stuff from a school, helping reduce intake. The government specifically demurred from doing so during the week, purely for the sake of a few pennies in a war on obesity that’s costing us billions.
Aaron, sweets are on sale everywhere. But because in this case they’re within the confines of the school you take a pot shot at government. Is it possible you might come clean on your politics too? It’s just that all your articles are not impartial, agenda driven and take a pop at government…
For somebody quoting ‘demand’ and ‘elasticity’ in your point you seem to missed completely the fact that your actually confusing ‘demand’ with ‘supply ‘ ….. Taking away tuck shops limits the supply …. But it does not stop the demand , young people will undoubtedly just switch where they buy their cans etc , again I think your claim that we could watch obesity plummet is just plain wrong and overstates the likely effect if closing all tuck shops , I think reforming physical education might be a much better way to try address obesity .
Hi Dave – It may not reduce demand, but it will reduce availability. I’m taking myself back to the grounds of my secondary school in Blanchardstown, where the sweets were on sale in a canteen in the building during our 11am break; and there was a garage a good five minute walk each way.
If we didn’t have the easy availability, it would reduce the number of people taking the ten minute trek for the sweets. Most arguments about demand seem to assume a perfectly functioning market where the nearest sweet shop is connected to the school if the school itself is not selling sweets. Or that kids will go out of their way to buy sweets on the way in (I always recall being up just about in time to get in the door, personally); or some other efficient means of getting the stuff.
Vending machines aren’t placed in schools to move supply; they’re there to generate demand.
As for O’Reilly, play the ball. Government is a standing institution that would have to face this choice regardless of who is in power.
Aaron, if “playing the ball” is your best advice you should consider taking heed yourself. You may also have noticed that most comments are in disagreement with you on this.
And your political persuasion?
Nonsense. I blame the parents and I don’t care how sexist or old fashioned I sound, I mainly blame the mothers ( I understand not all kids grow up with a mother) but the vast majority of kids in Ireland do. Why can’t they ensure their kids have proper meals? The growth of working mothers has lead to this growth in childhood obesity. Convenience food and no structure to kids lives.. dragged from post to pillar. Oh I know they have to work out of economic necessity… rubbish. The costs of often running a second car and childcare usually cancel out any financial benefits. If a woman decides on a career then best of luck to her but this talk of having it all… with the job and three kids…. is impacting not only on kid’s eating habits but society as a whole. I know many will agree with me but are uncomfortable doing so.
What a load of nonsense. Almost all of my friends work and they still cook nutritious meals for their families every day. And on the other side of that coin, there are some unemployed parents who feed their children processed crap.
A lot of women have to work, they are the bread winner’s in a lot of house’s.
Complete rubbish. Banning ANYTHING has never worked. Ever. Fed up of this joker’s articles every Saturday.
We are allowing this because we still live in a free democracy where people are entitled to make their own decisions, not have them dictated to us by government and interfering intellectuals.
Well hang on just a second. I give my child a good breakfast and pack her a nutritious lunch and I will do the same all through primary and secondary level. I’ll do my very best to educate them about good and bad food choices, that treats are fine in moderation, be careful not to form a link between ‘eating’ and ‘comfort eating’. As a parent, that’s my responsibility and no one else’s, by the same token I would like the work I’m doing with them to be consistently followed up by schools. Primary level operates a healthy eating policy and teaches all about nutrition, there’s no vending machines or tuck shops. Then they get to secondary level and there’s most likely both! That’s totally conflicting! Yes, there’s the opportunity to buy sweets on the way to school, as there is on the way to work etc. why doesn’t everyone do this? If you leave the house with a good breakfast you won’t, if you have a packed lunch, you have no Need to call into a shop and supplement your lunch. Most students are not allowed off the grounds at lunch time anyway and so won’t be going to the shop.
I think good Parents realise that they need to put the ground work in but would like the message to be consistent in schools, media, sports etc.
This is a load of nonsense ! Obesity begins very early in life !! There are no tuck shops in any primary schools I have been in !!!! The problem is with parents and homes. We see it every day in the supermarkets ….a certain type of parent smoking with her brats guzzling sweets beside her and a shopping basket full of calorie laden convenience foods….with chips !!
Theres nothing as ugly as a fat child
Why would they put soooo much emphasis on healthy eating policies in primary schools if it’s not followed up in secondary schools.. Just a thought. When unhealthy food is on tap, it’s going to be misused. Simple
The problem lies at home where kids are eating take-aways and microwave dinners, kids aren’t getting fat from the school vending machines, cop on
Jambons????
Rory Quinn has not done a single good thing for education since he took up his post why should we expect him to start now. This is a no brainer if they really cared about children,sadly its all about revenue, schools are struggling as it is and many cant afford the loss of income these machines bring in to the budget. Many schools claim they only put healthy snacks in the machines but breakfast bars etc are really just mars bars in disguise, they are loaded with sugar. On the flip side if they don’t get them from the vending machines they can pick them up on the shop on the way in to school.It’s time parents stood up and took responsibility for what is in their children’s lunch box and general diet.
Hang on. Aaron McKenna suggesting the government control a market and take the freedom away from the people?!
;-) Don’t panic. I SAID DON’T PANIC!!!
Schools are not a free market, they’re a regulated place where management carry in loco parentis powers and responsibilities. Yes, parents are irresponsible who stuff their houses with sweets. So are schools that stuff the building with sweets whilst devoting class time to trying to reduce consumption.
Member of Sinn Fein Aaron?
So do you agree that it is beneficial to separate certain things, such as education, from the free market philosophy, Aaron?
I think that the government has certain levers that the market can never touch. In a practical sense, we have a public sector, public funded education system where the Minister for Education essentially has oversight of a bunch of the stuff, from teacher standards to curriculum (such as promoting PE through subject changes). There are government programs to reduce obesity through schools, which are made inefficient by the fact that there are also government programs (essentially) to sell junk food in schools.
And no, Hound, I’m not a member of Sinn Fein. By a little ways.
That’s one way to state the obvious and avoid the question. I thought you were a business man, not a politician, Aaron! ;)
I guess to put my question another way;
Since you would be in favour of seeing childhood obesity in Ireland decrease, in an ideal world would you think this decrease is more likely to happen in a publicly funded school system in which the government can ultimately set rules for products sold on the school grounds. Or, in a free market based schooling system in which every school sets it’s own standards/products for sale on grounds based on what they perceive as demanded by the market/will make the most profit?
Ha – Well, to put it another way: I don’t believe in a world of absolutes. In general, I believe too much government is a bad idea. In specific instances, we have examples of things government can do well – Such as barring sweets from school premises that it effectively manages. We should take those opportunities. It’s not government controlling your intake of calories – It’s government saying that in government run property, where the government pays for programs to educate you on the ills of junk food and pays for teachers who specialise in making you healthier, the government doesn’t want to make revenue from selling junk food.
We have an education system that’s run the way it is run, and we have government programs that are run the way they are run. The best way to get a quick win here today, is to ban these machines in our schools. Taking a broader discussion about the merits of a more free market approach to the school system is out of scope.
I’ve previously written about how more personal responsibility is required in this area (http://www.thejournal.ie/readme/column-if-you-want-to-eat-fatty-foods-go-ahead-–-but-you-should-pay-for-the-consequences-834223-Mar2013/); with small government liberalism meeting the fact that you then expect government to pay for your bad decisions.
In a practical sense, schools are places where there is a loco parentis relationship and, from a consumer standpoint, a fairly captive audience. I’m rarely offered a pack of cigarettes by my doctor. He doesn’t sell them in his practice. It’s common sense. This is common sense.
Well that response is fair enough. I read the other article you wrote about New York.
I understand the point of view of libetarians that are concerned about this and actually advocate government interference because ultimately the financial cost of unhealthy eating is shared in social health care systems.
But surely the ultimate price being paid is a life of illness and/or early death?
I would imagine that it will be the economy of health, and in turn the education of this economy, that will regulate eating behaviour?
But like yourself, I’m well aware that there are no absolutes in such complex matters.
It’s refreshing to hear a libertarian business man accept that perhaps Adam Smith didn’t uncover the absolute path to economic perfection.
Keep up the interesting articles, Aaron.
Is he really blaming the vending machine when he’s to lazy to even take a picture of one himself? Instead relying on some American stock photo.
Obesity is not about vending machines and political mumbo jumbo it’s about personal responsibility and lifestyle – this begins in the home! Can we stop blaming everyone and everything but ourselves…. The suction is simple
Why does everything in this country have to be ban this and ban that? Guidelines and education on healthy eating works if implemented. Use our sporting/academic Hero’s to show kids the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.
Coming to an Ireland near you, The Looking Side Ways at Someone ban.
Yes yes yes. Jesus when I think about the shit my school used to sell its a wonder half of us are still alive
Are children given money every day going to school? I agree vending machines and tuck shops should be removed from schools but really the buck stops with the parents, vending machines don’t make children fat..
I am a teacher in a secondary school that has removed vending machines. The canteen still sells some sweets but no fizzy drinks. The issue of unhealthy hot food being sold in the canteen came up at a staff meeting recently. Teachers and the student council have discussed this at length. Healthy options are not being bought. The parents who want their child to eat well prepare lunches, most get money one day a week to buy food in school. Teenagers make their own decisions about food. If the only options are healthy ones, some will actually go hungry!
I fancy a Big Mac !
Definitely agree with banning tuck shops/vending machines in school. While it might not stop secondary school students from buying sweets at lunch, it will certainly stop children under 12 accessing rubbish on site. Yes, their mothers and fathers may still pack them a woeful lunch, but at least the school isn’t fuelling their sugar cravings too.
On a side note, when I moved to Dublin I couldn’t believe the amount of kids walking to school with cans of fizzy drink and chocolate in their hands. Most were overweight or obese, and I can only guess they were given money that morning to get “breakfast”.
Seems to me the problem is arising at home, and having additional access to sweets at school isn’t helping. Why you would bother giving your kids money everyday, instead of giving them a much cheaper packed lunch, doesn’t make sense.
I’d like to ask how do people afford it? That’s just a straight question I have 2 girls in secondary and a boy in primary I give them baked filled rolls and home made flapjacks with bottles of tap water! We can’t afford to give them lunch money! We have no obesity problems I’m just afraid at times they dont have enough but they seem fine! They get a good dinner each evening! I’m the opposite I feel guilty that their treats are the very odd times!
“Trans Fats” were banned in Denmark in 2006 and in Switzerland in 2009. New York this year.
Most packaged foods and snacks including “chips” have man made Trans fats to prolong their shelf life.
It appears that man made Trans Fats inhibit insulin function and cause Diabetes Type 2. Probable link to Obesity also.
Stop giving your kids packaged foods and snacks. Try an Apple (Irish), Pear, Orange, Banana, Walnuts, Blueberries, Grapes ….
New Food Pyramid needed with Berries and Nuts on top (not topping).
a bit of coordination is needed and there are numerous strands to this, schools supplying junk food, sports clubs taking sponsership from those diatebes type 2 “sports” drinks. A gubberment food pyramid that is like a shop window for junk food.and a gubberment food policy that equally enougages the production and supply of junk food via quangos like Bord Bia they call it “convenience food”. I would also suggest that the medial establishment is out of date as they still appear to go give out very outdated diet advice which isnt really that helpful to people in the long run.
The best thing people and parents can do is do their own research and dont expect any white knights, change will most likely be bottom up as people wise up (hopefully)
Children need a guiding hand when it comes to eating healthily. They can’t be trusted to stay away from junk food. It’s just childlike instinct and we’ve all been there. Any parent who allows their child to become obese has failed as a parent, if you ask me
Pooling the 2€ to get a pizza delivered to the school yard on big break….
test
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