It's amazing to me how many choices we face everyday as consumers. Walk into a grocery store to look for a cereal and you're bombarded with 275 varieties, including 7 "Cheerios" options. Round the corner to chose between 85 different varieties of crackers, 21 varieties of chocolate chip cookies, 13 "sports drinks," and 120 different pasta sauces.
I remember when I was younger and my mom and I would "split up" in the grocery store to make the shopping trip quicker. It always took me longer, no matter how many items I was sent to find because I was overwhelmed with my options. I knew we ate tuna, but I had no idea there were so many types, even within a single brand. Salad dressing, bread, microwave popcorn, meat... none of those products are easy to shop for. I ended up running around the store to find my mom and ask her about the particulars because I didn't want to choose the "wrong" thing. Then, because I learned to be thrifty by following my father's example, I would spend time examining the price per ounce labels on the two or three things I deemed were the correct items, which only served to complicate things more. Now that I'm older, I know what I like and I simply ignore the other options and don't worry so much about whether one brand is cheaper than the other. After all, time is money too.
Choices with food don't just stop at the grocery store though. When we go out to eat, we often face a gigantic menu and are encouraged to select many things even for one meal: beverage, appetizer, salad, soup, main dish, dessert. Of course, most people I know only choose a drink and a single menu item, but the option is there to go all out. Cafeterias are also full of choices. With so many options, it's easy to get overwhelmed and simply go for something that's easy and familiar. Heck, maybe it even goes so far as to induce stress eating.
That's why I think it's a good idea that certain schools are scrapping their old menus and opting for healthier options in their cafeterias. The British government introduced regulations in September that banish the meals children tend to love: hamburgers, French fries, deep-fried processed meat, and sugary drinks. Instead of those things, the regulations require schools to include at least two portions of fresh fruit and vegetables a day for each child, fish at least once a week, limit fried foods to two servings a week, and cut out candy, chips, and soda altogether.
The rules apply to schools in England and Wales; Scotland has a separate healthy lunch program.
The new problem the schools are facing is that many parents object, saying that schools should not be allowed to tell children what to eat.
My objection to that is: do you want them to eat like you do' Do you want them to grow up with unhealthy habits that lead to unhealthy bodies' It's somebody's job to help kids learn how to make appropriate food choices, so if parents aren't going to do it at home, a healthy meal every day at the school should be accepted as a necessity. With so many adults spending billions of dollars on weight loss drugs, diet books, weight loss programs, and pre-cooked diet meals, why wouldn't a parent want their child to simply learn to eat healthfully at a young age so that they grow accustomed to it and actually like to eat fruits and vegetables' You'd save a lot of money, grief, and regret in the long run. If you really just want to make a statement about government interference in private matters, pack a lunch for your child.
