[Printer Friendly Version]   [How to E-mail This Article to A Friend]

WEEKLY NEWS 2: Texas Schools Get Healthy

Kids in Texas public schools can say good-bye to deep-fried foods and whole milk, and say hello to a leaner, healthier lunch.

By August, Texas cafeterias will try to serve healthier foods by adhering to new rules developed by the Texas Agriculture Department. The changes include limiting how often french fries can be served, how much fat and sugar a meal can have, and what kinds of milk can be offered.

The new rules also require that canned fruits contain only natural juices or light syrups, and they also limit the type of potato chips to the reduced fat or baked varieties. Pizza fundraisers that compete with the cafeteria will also be banned.

These changes are an expansion of a policy created last August by Agriculture Commissioner Susan Combs, which banned "foods of minimal nutritional value," including sodas, hard candy, and gum. This policy affects elementary and middle-school children.

Combs developed these new policies in an effort to fight the problem of childhood obesity. According to Combs, 38 percent of Texas fourth-graders are overweight.

In twenty states, students are not allowed to have junk food before lunch, and about two dozen states have either limits or total bans on vending machines.

This new Texas policy goes into effect on August 1st for all Texas schools participating in the national school lunch, breakfast, and after-school snack programs.

--Written by Amanda Tassin

Write your own story telling us what you think about this article!

Read WEEKLY NEWS 3: Remarkable Hole-In-One