Replace soda with water for kids– “Water in Schools”

By Georgianna Mann, Ph.D., Department of Human Nutrition, Foods, and Exercise, member of Water IGEP, Virginia Tech

More than one-third of children in the United States are classified as overweight or obese. Children aren’t consuming the recommended fruits, vegetables or whole-grains. With these issues in mind, the Healthy-Hunger Free Kids Act of 2010 was established. It created new standards for the National School Lunch Program (effective 2012) as well as standards for all snacks sold in schools (effective 2014). One of the new policies outlined for school cafeterias mandates that a free water source be available to students during mealtimes. As one could guess, some schools are much better at enforcing this than others. Some offer coolers/pitchers and cups, whereas some rely on water fountains… and sometimes those fountains aren’t too clean.

Schools, particularly those in low-income areas, have expressed difficulty both in simply meeting these standards, citing financial barriers and the struggle to keep up with picky customers. A major stakeholder in healthier meals and policies are parents! With that in mind, the “Water in Schools” advocacy group has made a new toolkit available to promote parent involvement. I’m eager to see progress in schools towards a culture of health, particularly with support from parents and staff. We know that water consumption can be crucial in health maintenance and aid in weight loss particularly when sodas are replaced with water. Let’s hope we see changes towards water becoming the new normal in schools!