Discussion of The Issue: Should Schools Sell Junk Food

Unhealthy eating is one of the most important health risk factors that can cause a range of chronic diseases, including cardiovascular diseases, cancer, diabetes and other conditions linked to obesity. Unhealthy eating can add to an individual’s health risk by over consumption, lack of fruits and vegetables and saturated fat intake. A diet that isn’t healthy fails to provide the body with the correct amounts and types of nutrients for maximum health. Unhealthy eating should be banned in schools by the Ministry of Education because unhealthy eating can make it hard for the brain to function, poor eating habits developed at an early age can lead to a life-time of real health consequences and many students gain their dietary nutrition from the school feeding programme therefore school lunches should enforce a balance diet.

Unhealthy eating should be banned in schools by the Ministry of Education because it can make it hard for the brain to function, according to Consumer Health Digest, there are several types of foods that are terrible for the brain health. The additives and preservatives in junk food such as Monosodium and Sodium Nitrite can have impairing effects on cognition. Studies on Medical Daily have also shown that junk foods harm cognition. In addition, food that contains outstanding amounts of preservatives might cause a negative effect on the brain health. Fatty or junk food is easily reached almost everywhere in the world. It is one of the leading causes of obesity that can increase individual’s risk of developing diabetes. Researchers on Consumer Health Digest have revealed that high level of insulin caused by consuming too much junk food or a bad diet can affect the brain. Too much fatty foods and sweets can also increase an individual’s insulin level causing muscles, fat and liver cells to no longer react to the hormone. Like other organs subjecting the brain to a significant quantity of insulin can cause it to stop responding to the hormone, restricting the ability to think and generate new memories (Nikki Tucker, 2012). Research published in the journal Nutritional Neuroscience discovered that adults under 30 years who eat lots of junk food can drastically increase mental distress.

Another reason why unhealthy eating should be banned in schools by the Ministry of Education is because poor eating habits developed at an early age can lead to a life-time of real health consequences. According to SF GATE, A poor diet doesn’t discriminate against race, gender or income level; however certain groups of children are expected to have a poorer diet than others. A child’s diet has both short-term and long-term effects on health. In short-term poor nutrients can contribute to stress, drowsiness and the capacity to work., some concerns include gaining weight that can lead to a child becoming overweight or obese, which in turn has its own health risk, such as developing type 2 diabetes. In the long run, an unhealthy diet for a child can have effects that last into adulthood, including a higher risk of heart disease, cancer, osteoporosis and high blood pressure. According to SFGATE for healthy eating, a child’s diet can be a major role in his/her ability to learn. A child’s failure to eat fruits, vegetables and dairy products is associated with lower grades, while nutrient deficits, such as vitamin A, B6, B12, C, iron, zinc and calcium, are linked to higher rates of absenteeism, tardiness and low grades. The Center of Disease Control and Prevention explains that one in five deaths around the world is related to a poor diet that is associated with diabetes and cardiovascular disease. According to the Global Burden of Disease study (GBD) in a release in September 2017, poor nutrition might kill an individual in the long run but eating fast food has an immediate and mid-term negative effect on our mental and physical health and well-being.

Lastly unhealthy eating should be banned in schools by the Ministry of Education because many students gain their dietary nutrition from the school feeding programme therefore, school lunches should enforce a balanced diet since a junk meal or two won’t have a permanent impact on a child, but eating unhealthy lunches for years can take a toll on both mental and physical health. Just as adults need a balanced diet of all six (6) nutrients (carbohydrates, fats, water, protein, vitamins and minerals), children and young adults are even more in need of these nutrients to help build strong and healthy bones, increase cognitive functioning and to also bolster their immune system. Most of these nutrients are found in whole foods like fresh fruits and vegetables which are now being de-emphasized in school lunches (Joy Stephenson-Laws, JD, Founder, 2013). According to the National School Lunches Program (NSLP), school lunches matter and if a teacher or doctor was questioned on it they’ll say that children who lack proper nutrition would eventually have trouble focusing in school. Medical authorities and nutritional experts have documented that students who eat nutritional meals every day tend to excel in school. An unbalanced diet can be severely detrimental to the performance of students over time; students are more likely to become sick when eating unhealthy. These illness can then have an effect on the amount of classes missed and can cause the students to fall behind and as a result cause students to have little courage and concentration during class.

However critics argue that unhealthy eating is a growing problem that should be taken seriously but it cannot be solved by just limiting the choice of food in schools because students will still eat unheathing foods outside of school. Having evaluated the argument above, there is a wide range of research as to why unhealthy eating should be banned in schools. Research on the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases have proved that unhealthy eating can contributed to obesity and increase the risk of many health problems such as diabetes and heart disease.

Therefore to bring this essay to a close, and the issue of should schools sell junk food, unhealthy eating should be banned in schools by the Ministry of Education because it presents more problems than benefits to individuals and as mentioned above unhealthy eating can make it hard for the brain to function, poor eating habits developed at an early age can lead to health consequences and many students gain their dietary nutrition from the school feeding programme therefore, school lunches should enforce a balanced diet.

References

1. https://www.medicaldaily.com/junk-food-rots-your-brain-increases-risk-dementia-242256
2. https://healthteating.sfgate.com
3. https://www.cdc.gov/diseasesconditions/index.html
4. Maxine, R. S. (2013). Nutritional Neuroscience: Part I, An Emerging Paradigm in Substance Use Disorders
5. https://www.fns.usda.gov/nslp/national-school-lunch-program-nslp
6. https://www.niddk.nih.gov