Obesity in America

Here we are again talking about just how fat Americans are. I understand that it isn't just black and white with this issue and that it isn't a matter of simple preferences but a matter of what is healthy for our children. We have seen recently in the news, stories of children's lunches being taken away, soda pop machines being replaced, candy and chips not being sold on campuses and chocolate milk being removed from the cafeterias. Now there is this news about bake sales being banned in Massachusetts . Really? That is the problem? Bake sales and fundraisers? Give me a break. I wish that those things were the root of all our obesity issues. So what is? Some will argue that it food prices. It is expensive to eat well while the dollar menu at McDonald's fits better in to family budgets. I can attest to the fact that good food costs more-here at my local grocery stores it generally costs $1.99 a lb for apples. Granted, that is a snapshot price for one thing at one small grocery store and it isn't the cheapest place to buy anything most of the time. Anyway, I will concede that healthy food (organic anyone?) is definitely pricier than mac and cheese and a cheeseburger and fry BUT lets examine the average American household budget shall we?
Most families have a home phone and with all the bundling offered by companies like Century Link and Comcast, most families have cable/satellite and internet. Most families have at least 1 cell phone (in families with multiple drivers that number usually increases so that each driver has their own phone) and those plans are increasing in cost especially with Verizon's data packages being required on most of their phones (just about every phone worth having really.) People have rent, gas, car payments and some even have health insurance and maybe even life insurance costs to deal with. So where do people take the money from in order to put it into a healthy food fund? You'd be surprised. That cable bill? Perhaps realizing that you don't need 400 channels would help save you some cash. Men who think that their baseball games are worth the $180 that Comcast asks for (that's with a special promotion) and then at the same time feed their kids cheap burgers instead of healthy fruits and veggies are insane. Trim that cable fat people! There are places to get that cash to put aside for healthy food but for a lot of people they just don't want to give up THEIR things for healthy food or they say that they will "save" so little money that it won't make a difference. Hey, you'd be surprised at what $20 a month can buy in apples.
The second point people will bring up is time. People are too busy to pack lunches for their kids and/or cook a meal for dinner. While it is true that when you have both parents working until at least 5pm it is tough to provide a home-cooked meal or a home packed lunch but it isn't impossible. It takes time management. Truly it takes what, 15 minutes to make a lunch? Pack a turkey sandwich with a bag of chips, an apple or orange, a carton of milk or juice and a granola bar. Not too time consuming really. Now, dinner on the other hand is pretty time consuming and if you add in any after school activities and games you are sure to be getting home with enough time to unwrap your meal before everyone has to start getting ready for the next day at school or work. While dinner is a more daunting task it can still be done. Pick one day a week for "take-out" that way you know for sure there is one day you do not have to worry about dinner-and don't make it Monday. On Saturday and Sunday make extra. That way you have two nights of leftover potential. Freezing casseroles is another great time saver  and guess what? Hamburger meat is pretty inexpensive and can be healthy enough to eat once a week if paired with veggies. The truth is that eating healthy is more than just a bit more pricey, its TIME CONSUMING and I think that is more the issue for some people-they are lazy and would rather have quick fixes than take the time to manage their cash better and plan out healthy meals. So, Massachusetts, maybe instead of banning cupcakes and brownies from being sold, you offer courses on how to manage money and make food at home....what was that class my grandparents took...oh, yeah, home ec. What a new concept huh?