Should Schools be Allowed to Sell Fast Food?
For many years, the debate on whether fast foods should still be sold for learners’ consumption has triggered diverse opinions. There are health, social and economic reasons that support this motion. The motion is mainly endorsed because it is directly connected to the future generation. This paper, therefore, presents facts that support the ban on selling fast foods in school.
Every time the topic “Fast food in schools” arises, students usually are the main point of attention. Fast food, also known as junk food, is considered the favourite meal for students in the United States of America. A survey on the health benefits of fast foods carried out in Whitney High School in California; found out that students identify with their favourite joints and favourite junk food (Kerly, 2016). It is evident that, based on the survey’s outcome, fast food is not as healthy as ordinary food. Fast food is any food whose preparation period could take less than five minutes. Good examples of such foods include sandwiches, pizza, French fries, or noodles.
Nutrition experts explain in breadth capacity why fast foods should be kept away from schools vending machines or canteens. Young students are usually ignorant of the adverse effects that these foods pose to their health. Although others would argue that consuming them keeps one away from hunger, the health implications still stand to be a threat, especially to young students. They do not understand nutrition education (Kerly, 2016). The amount of calories and fats in fast foods is higher than in regular meals. Such high amounts will only result in students acquiring lifestyle diseases at a tender age. Cases of students with obesity, blood pressure and cancer are streaming in daily in health facilities with reports indicating fast foods being their causative agents.
Food hygiene is of great concern for most parents. There is not adequate information given on the processing procedures of these foods so that one can determine whether it is healthy for consumption. Medical records of infectious diseases for people who handle these foods usually are not displayed for the public to verify (Madsen, 2020). Considering that these foods are bought and consumed instantly, we would be endangering our youngsters to unknown, incurable and contagious diseases such as Covid-19.
Shifting directions from health impacts, the presence of fast foods in schools has caused adverse social effects. Children are considered an essential part of the family. They play an indispensable role in helping apparent minor chores. In the process of doing this, they learn responsibilities. In the recent past, teenagers have been observed to be addicts of fast foods. They buy and eat a lot of fast food at school (Kerly, 2016). When they break the day and return home, they skip meals because they are already full of the meal (fast food) eaten at school. This is a bad habit that needs to be stopped because it denies families their parent-child bond time. Students are now seen to skip duties at home because they return from school tires as a result of the massive consumption of fast food (Pillsbury, 2007).
In summary, there are enough reasons to ban the selling of fast foods in our schools. This is because our students are at significant risk of contracting contagious and lifestyle diseases. Also, social bonding in families needs to return to normalcy for the benefit of the future generation.
References
Kerly, M. (2016). Analyzing meals served at Whitney High school Canteens. Hygiene and contagious diseases Journal,45(6), 352-358. University of California Press.
Madsen, K. (2020). Fast Food Embodied: INDUSTRIAL DIETS. In Nestle M. (Author) & Jayaraman S. & De Master K. (Eds.), Bite Back: People Taking On Corporate Food and Winning (pp. 121-129). Oakland, California: University of California Press.
Pillsbury, R. (2007). Fast Food. In WILSON C. (Author) & EDGE J. (Ed.), The New Encyclopedia of Southern Culture: Volume 7: Foodways (pp. 162-164). University of North Carolina Press.