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School Vending Machines |
The down sides of vending machines:
Most of the income is not retained by the school, but goes to the beverage companies.
The amount of money a school spends on addressing the adverse effects of junk food is far greater than the income they receive. [3]
Note: Many schools have signed contracts with cola giants without putting such contracts out for competitive bidding -- which is in violation of their regulations.
Suggested changes:
Schools that have changed the food in both their vending machines and cafeterias have seen a dramatic drop in behavior problems and an impressive rise in test scores. [4]
Help with solutions:
Vending machines can be stocked with healthy and/or less harmful options. Here are a few:
Fritos or natural Cheetos, natural Doritos, natural Tostitos, pretzels, potato chips without petroleum-based preservatives, natural candy, granola and cereal bars, natural beverages like The Switch, Izzy, Orangina. Even original Coke, Pepsi and 7UP would be a better choice than the diet versions.
There are candies that are free of harmful additives, and three major candy companies in England are removing the petroleum-based dyes from their products. Several British supermarket chains are doing this in their store-brand products.
More help is available:
The Lancet, Sept 6, 2007 - new British study shows that food dyes and the preservative sodium benzoate trigger ADHD-like symptoms in ordinary children, not only those diagnosed with ADHD.
Food dyes are made from petroleum and have been shown to cause: DNA damage, reproductive damage, nerve damage, disturbed behavior, learning deficits, cancer, asthma, headaches, hives, among others.
Aspartame - used in many diet sodas - has been shown to cause brain tumors, seizures, nerve damage, as well as numerous other adverse effects.
BHA, BHT, TBHQ - common preservatives synthesized from petroleum - are linked with cell death, enlarged liver and cancerous tumors.
MSG is linked with nerve damage, migraine headaches, cell death and obesity.
Excess fructose (as in high fructose corn syrup) leads to a reduction in dietary copper, which is a risk factor in heart disease. It is also believed to contribute to obesity.
These are extraordinary accusations against what we often consider ordinary food ingredients. See the scientific studies supporting them when you click on the links above.
In 2003 Fairfax County Virginia schools earned $900,000 on income from vending machines. But the same year they spent an additional $168,000,000 on special education programs. When the harmful additives are removed, some children are able to move to mainstream classes, at an enormous saving.
The Appleton, Wisconsin Alternative High School had been a seriously troubled facility, composed of children who had been expelled from their home school and many who had been incarcerated. When they
changed the food served in the school, bringing in healthy foods, the discipline problems ceased and learning improved.
In the late 1970s New York City changed the foods they served in their 803 schools. Once they had removed synthetic dyes, flavorings and preservatives and enhanced the nutrition in the food, the children's test scores rose from the 39th percentile to the 55th percentile on the California Achievement Test.
The number of children who were performing at more than 2 years below grade level went from 12.4% to 4.9%, which means 75,000 children improved enough to meet their grade level in performance.
The Shipley Project in 1998 found that
nine children with persistent anti-social, disruptive and/or criminal behaviours all had a number of food allergies or intolerances and mineral imbalances, particularly in zinc. The health and behaviour of all nine subjects improved both physically and psychologically when their dietary intake and mineral imbalances were corrected.
Schoenthaler in 1991 found that in 813 state facilities, improved diet "resulted in significantly improved conduct, intelligence, and/or academic performance..."
Dr. Bernard Gesch in 2003 published a study of 231 young adult prisoners. He found that improving their nutrition resulted in a dramatic improvement in behavior.
The benefits of vending machines:
To supplement a school's income, to offer quick snacks to hungry students.
They are usually stocked with unhealthy food. These foods contain additives that have been shown to cause behavior, learning and health problems in many children. [1] [2]
Replace the unhealthy foods with better versions that are not linked to behavior, learning and health problems.
Since most of the income from the machines goes to the cola companies, some schools have purchased their own machines, and stock them with healthy foods. This way the children benefit and the school is able to retain the entire income from the sales.
There are numerous resources to help schools wishing to improve the products in their vending machines. Two such companies are Stonyfield Farms and Yo Naturals.
For details on improving school food, see www.school-lunch.org.
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