With nearly 33% of children in America considered to be overweight or obese - a rate that has tripled in adolescents and more than doubled in younger children since 1980 - an Obama Administration task force recently established a goal of reducing the childhood obesity rate to just 5% by 2030, less than a generation away.
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According to C & R's Youth Beat, kids eat at a restaurant 2.5 times a month. In an average 30-day month, there are 150 meal occasions:
- 30 Breakfasts
- 30 Lunches
- 30 Dinners
- 60 Snacks (at twice a day)
If kids are only going to restaurants 2-3 times a month, they account for only
2 percent of all meal occasions.
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President Bill Clinton Honors 179 U.S.
Schools
The Alliance for a Healthier Generation, founded by the American Heart Association and the William J. Clinton Foundation, today recognized 179 schools that have transformed their campuses into healthier places for students and staff.
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An article on thestir.cafemom.com shared opinions about the recent activities surrounding Childhood Obesity Awareness Month.
Kim Conte, explained that while restaurants do have a responsibility to keep people healthy, they are not the main source of blame.  American’s need to be better educated on nutrition and the negative effects of overeating.
“I agree that restaurants do have a responsibility to help in the effort to reduce obesity rates and get Americans eating healthier — after all, one-third of all meals today are eaten outside the home. But this call to arms — whether it’s coming from Obama or the PCRM — needs to be in tandem with public education on how people also share in the responsibility of making healthy food choices for themselves and their families.”
Conte’s opinion comes from a newly released video created by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine and Michelle Obama’s speech to restaurant owners, urging them to offer healthier options on menus.
