It was a treat to have lunch with my little sister the other day! I love being a “big” as part of the Big Brothers and Big Sisters program in the Cedar Valley. We spend about an hour together a week and both she and I greatly look forward to it. On Friday I promised her I would come to her school and have lunch with her.  It was a bit of a challenge since her lunch was only an hour away from our noon newscast but luckily her school is very close to my work.

She was so excited and her teacher told me she had talked about it all day long with her friends. When I got there she grabbed her lunch and we were able to eat in the classroom while the other kids went to the lunchroom to eat. It’s been so long that I have been in a grade school that I forgot what lunch was like.

The main component of her lunch was two pancakes that were wrapped in a plastic covering like you would get in a vending machine. They were cinnamon glaze pancakes as the package claimed. She also had hash browns with ketchup, pink applesauce, sausage and an option for cucumbers as a side which she refused. Essentially her lunch consisted of sugar, refined white carbohydrates and little else. She loved it though and ate down every bite.

It reminded me very much of the food I had all throughout my school years. One of my favorites was french toast sticks and syrup. We also had pizza, enchiladas, taco bake etc.

I don’t remember having much salad or a vegetable hardly ever in school.

I don’t blame schools for this dilemma whatsoever. Little money and not much control over lunch options leave schools in a pickle. It was just eye opening for me to think about what our kids are eating. With problems like childhood obesity and more children being diagnosed with diabetes we are raising a very unhealthy generation.

If I have a lunch like that–I usually end up sluggish and tired by the end of the day. How are our children staying sharp and fit with so much sugar in the diet?

I had a wonderful time with my little though and I was so happy to put a smile on her face. I don’t know the solution to this problem or know of any instant remedies besides feeding your children healthy foods at home at least. At least if you can teach them the difference between healthy foods and chemical foods–you can start them on the path of healthy living.

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