Diet, Weight Loss, and Healthy Eating
Lauren Kreutziger
May 19, 2010
Filed under News, Top Stories
student weighs herself in hopes of having lost weight
People in the United States are concerned about their weight. These statistics are not lost on BMC students. Students at BMC are concerned about their weight and healthy eating, and they are taking action.
“I wasn’t happy about my looks because I had been the same weight for years and I was starting to gain weight!” Senior Cherith Blaha exclaimed when talking about her junior year.
This is so true for a lot of teens and sometimes the end result is dieting.
“Last [school] year I decided to skip lunch because I was trying to lose weight and I didn’t have a free lunch card to get lunch, so I just didn’t eat,” Blaha stated.
This school year Blaha has a different approach to dieting.
I’m limiting myself to one sweet a day,” commented Blaha.
But she found out that this has side effects.
“I have been having headaches from the sugar withdraws.”
On the other hand there are people who think they need to gain weight.
Junior Patrick Matthews explained, “I want to gain weight because I am skinny. I want to gain 5 to 10 pounds.”
Some students don’t realize that a healthy balanced diet is the best thing for teenagers.
Science Teacher Greg Grabowski stated, “A balanced, healthy diet, plenty of water and exercise is the best advice [for teens who think they want to diet]. And this has worked for so many generations.”
The White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity points to the need to improve school lunch as a way to help reduce childhood obesity and improve health. They sent the White House Report on Childhood Obesity to the president in May 2010. In it they support The Healthier US School Challenge, created by the USDA Food and Nutrition Service. This “challenge,” according to the House report, “establishes rigorous criteria for schools’ food quality, participation in meal programs, physical activity, physical education, and nutrition education.”
Because Brashier does not receive federal money for school lunch, they provide lunch from fast food restaurants
Lunch Volunteer, Lisa Jewell said, “The choices are very limited. All I see students get is junk or candy. They [administration] could add healthier lunch choices; although the cost is not as effective.”
BMC also offers sodas as a drink choice. Unfortunately this is hard on some of the students.
Senior Taneshea Young explained, “I have been trying to limit sodas, but that is hard when the cafeteria offers soda as a choice in the lunch menu…I feel limiting sodas is necessary because too much soda is bad for your health.”
However, all BMC students might not be overly obsessed about healthy eating and weight loss.
Vanessa Steadham said
, “I think that so many people are concerned with healthy eating and weight loss because society thinks people should be stick thin and anorexic. However, I think it’s disgusting when you watch a Victoria Secret model and you can see all of her ribs.”
And finally, according to calorielab.com, naturally skinny people move around a lot, eat more protein, and enjoy smaller portion sizes. They also tend to drink a lot of water and they don’t snack as much. Perhaps most of all they don’t obsess over every pound
Grabowski agrees with calorielab.com and gives his advice to students who want to diet. “A student obsessed with weight loss and dieting usually has an unhealthy view of their appearance and the need to be thin. It is dangerous to try to conform to someonelses unrealistic expectations of how you should look. A person’s value goes way beyond their outward appearance.”
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Good thought provoking article.
I think it is very unwise of the school to participate in addicting kids to fast food. If you have a captive audience, why not show them how much better they feel on a balanced diet of vegetables, fruits and lean meats. Healthier kids come to school more, feel more like studying. Fast food is false economy!
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