US Features
Clinton wrestles US obesity: no more sweet soda in US schools
By Pat Reber May 3, 2006, 18:49 GMT
Washington - Former US president Bill Clinton, who never could resist a doughnut or French fries on the campaign trail, has taken his get-healthy campaign into the nation's schools.
On Wednesday, he unveiled an agreement by the US soda and drink industry to stop tempting students with sugary and fat-loaded drinks in the schools - and warned that nations like India, Argentina and Ireland are wrestling with similar obesity problems.
The drinks, along with high-fat fast food, are blamed for contributing to an alarming increase in obesity among children and adults in the US.
Under the agreement, brokered by the William J. Clinton Foundation and the American Heart Association (AHA), the giant drink manufacturers Cadbury Schweppes, Coca-Cola and PepsiCo, along with the American Beverage Association, have agreed to limit sales of high caloric drinks in US schools.
'The truth is that children born today could become part of the first generation in American history to live shorter lives than their parents because so many are eating too much of the wrong things and not exercising enough,' Clinton said in broadcast remarks.
Clinton, whose late night raids for pizza and hamburgers were legendary during his time at the White House, had quadruple heart bypass surgery in 2004 after a highly publicized campaign to lose weight.
The school drinks agreement was reached after 'complicated and occasionally difficult negotiations,' Clinton said, adding that it was a 'truly significant thing' for the industry to do, and it was 'not entirely free of risks' for them.
US schools allow drink and snack companies to install vending machines in return for a share in the profits, a practice under attack by the medical community and, increasingly, from parents and state governments who must pick up soaring costs of diseases related to obesity.
Since 1970, the number of overweight US children has doubled or even tripled, according to a study by the Institute of Medicine last year. Estimates of obesity among US children range from 15 to 40 per cent. At the same time, there is less sport at school, and more than 40 per cent of schoolchildren have no sport at all, Time magazine reported. Only 6 per cent have sport every day.
An inveterate traveller since he left office, Clinton noted that other countries are also experiencing a similar surge in obesity, including India.
Many Indians have 'abandoned what I think is the most interesting diet in the world' in favour of western foods Clinton said, referring to his preferred traditional food of India.
The new rules are to be in place in 75 per cent of the nation's schools by the beginning of the 2008 school year, with the remaining schools to follow by 2009. Elementary schools are only to sell water and small eight-ounce (0.24 litre) portions of juices with no sugar added, and similar portions of fat free and low fat plain-or- flavoured milk.
Older children in middle school, from grades six to eight, have a little more leeway, with 0.3 litre portions of the same fare.
At the high school level, the portions grow to 0.35 litres, and at least half of all beverages are to be water, no-and-low-calorie selections, with a limit of 100 calories per container.
'This really is a groundbreaking agreement,' said AHA President Robert Eckel.
The deal comes as soft drink companies are fighting to hang on to consumers. The food industry and fast food chains for example invest more than 10 billion dollars on advertising that targets children every year, according to the Institute of Medicine.
Coca-Cola Co, the world's largest maker of soft drinks, has seen earnings drop over the past several quarters and had lowered its sales and earnings outlook for the foreseeable future due to declining sales in North America and Europe and fierce competition from PepsiCo Inc.
Its participation in the school low-calorie programme could also serve the industry's slumping public relations profile, according to comments at the unveiling.
'Our broad product portfolio offers great taste, refreshment, hydration and nutrition,' said Donald Knauss, president of Coca-Cola North America, in a press release published by the Clinton Foundation.
Pepsi Cola and Cadbury Schweppes executives also chimed in their support of a healthy life style and sports for students.
'Limiting calories in schools is a sensible approach that acknowledges our industry's long standing belief that school wellness efforts must focus on teaching kids to consume a balanced diet and be physically active,' said Susan Neely, president of the American Beverage Association (ABA).
The ABA plans to monitor the percentage of schools under contract with the new guidelines, and make the information publicly available.
© 2006 dpa - Deutsche Presse-AgenturCOMMENT
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Older Talkback
page: 1
Personally, I love it! Everyone needs more choices, I applaud this effort. The health of our children is so essential to our future, we absolutely must stand up as a nation and even as a world and realize what we are doing to ourselves before it's too late.
nope, soda is good!!!!! lets keep it!!!
Thank goodness something is being done even if it is just a publicity ploy by the soda manufacturers.
I can't believe Clinton is involved in this! We have so much more to worry about and here he is taking soft drinks out of schools? Pleeeze. Give me a Break and tell Bill to get a life.
You choose what you worry about!
Bill Clinton is a legend, he has always done his best for the American people and always will... If Clinton was president now, America would not be in the mess it finds itself in today. This deal which Clinton has arranged will start to tackle the ever growing problem of obesity. This is just a start, parents need to take this further and implent healthy diets and ensure their children take part in more sport. With this childhood obesisty need no longer be a problem in the 21st century. Thanks to the new initiative from William Jefferson Clinton!
I think that it is the right thing. It will help more students to be more active in avtivites at school and home. It'll also help them eat better and have more energy and not be so lazy and actual do something.
thats right, take the sugary soda out and let them have diet sodas sweetened with aspartame and splenda. that stuff is far worse than the sugars are. take a few minutes and research aspartame. if anything, give them natural fruit juice.
Eat less , live longer ..
Talk lesss,. live longer...
Sleep less, live longer...
while living love longer...
while loving breath longer,,,
while breathing meditate on the self longer
while meditating lose the ego immediately,,,
Dont wait longer,,
its not my fault its the school's fault todays children are obese. What is wrong with us today? Have we any personal responsibility? No, we don't!!!! We are slaves to the marketing of businesses. We no longer have the ability to think for ourselves. We cannot choose right from wrong and unless a business starts selling personal responsibility we are screwed.
From the individual who spilled hot coffee on him/her, to the individual who started smoking and now has cancer - both have sued their respective manufacturer's and we are better off for them. Thankfully we engrained this 'passing of the buck' down to our children too!!! Now they too can play the innocent victim who didn't know better and couldn't rationalize. Man, this is my savior!!! Just as I started to get worried, I see how we taught our children the greatest lesson of all - its not them, its the system.
Yeah, yeah, I'm cold hearted and I hate the kids - I am sure I will hear from you who go along with this decision. Hopefully, you will not be the same parents I saw at Mount Rainier whose panting and overweight 10 year old child trailed behind his parents three hundred verticle feet above Paradise. Its been five years since that day and I remember it like it happened yesterday - a ten year old boy asking his parents to turn around because he was too tired. I stopped dead in my tracks, thought back to my youth and remembered my parents trying to keep a rein on me and my brothers as we ran off into the woods. I guess I expect too much.
Yes, some children may have medical reasons for their weight problems and to those I sympathize with. However, I am well aware that all of today's overweight children do not have medical conditions. Instead they have an addiction to playstation, the computer and the tv, and are allergic to any event which may reqire running, walking, lifting, climbing or any other physical exercise. Furthermore, their parents cannot force them to go play or exercise, nor do their parents accept their position as a leader and exercise with them - for they are not allowed to think for themselves. Nope, they are too busy to consider the future consequences. Oh yeah, its also not the schools responsibility to ensuer the students receive adequate exercise - ITS YOURS!!!! They are your offspring, your love and your future - not the schools!!!!
I guess I should be glad I graduated nine years ago becaused I enjoyed my Yoohoo or Coke after practice. Never once did I think others would not have the opportunity to enjoy the same gratifications as me.
This is just evolution of an earlier problem - the progression for passing the blame. First, it was the fast food restruants because they didn't offer the nutritional information. Now, its the schools fault because they offer non-diet soda. And when us parents do not see results we will be sure to blame something else - maybe the grocery store because they sell us all those good Oreos. Before I go I want to share a little hint: It's not the schools' fault your children are overweight. It's YOUR (parents) fault your children are fat. They do not exercise!!!! I emplore you to be the leader you are and take the lead in your childrens health. Not by laziness, restriction, regulation or law, but through discipline. Discipline to eat right, excercise, study, learn and THINK for yourself. You are responsible for your future, as well as your childs, not me, not the government, not businesses.
For all those who made it down here I thank you and ask you to accept responsibilty for your actions.
Here we go again! I don't represent any manufacturer of sweeteners. EW's comment about Splenda & Aspartame are based on very suspect data from a few malcontents and people with a financial interest in getting them banned. It's a redux of the constant assult (over 5 decades) on the dangers of floride when added to drinking water. Sugar substitues have done a marvelous job reducing type II diabetes in adult populations. PS: I don't like the taste of Splenda.
...just keep him away FROM any high school girls, especially cheerleaders!
Maybe he can promote sexual abstinence?
page: 1
fatjaxMay 3rd, 2006 - 19:42:46
I think we'd better start with the parents. I have just as much access to junk food as my son, and little choice for anything else, just like my son.
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