I was surfing the news channels this past long New Year’s weekend and catching up on my huge stack of news papers and magazines and came across several stories about the Department of Education (DOE) in New York, banning bake sales in schools in an attempt to decrease obesity. At first, it seemed to make sense. I thought that there must be millions of kids eating cake and cookies at these sales. I read the entire memo  issued June 29, 2009, in accordance with the polices and initiatives of the New York DOE’s Wellness Policy to “improve the quality and nutritional value of foods and beverages that are available for children.” New York, already one of the first states to display calorie and nutritional values of foods on sale to the public and in restaurants and eliminate trans fats, may be on the cutting edge with this latest move to blunt the obesity epidemic, an epidemic that has yet to have any viable solutions. Or are they?

Okay, so you “it’s my right to eat whatever I want, whenever I want” followers are already lining up to say this is yet another unconstitutional action. Aren’t bakes sales a part of our culture? Bakes sales raise money for good causes at County Fairs, religious centers and the Great American Bake Sale sponsored by the Share Our Strength organization raises money for millions of hungry children.

So is it really the bake sale that is contributing to the obesity epidemic? Or is it the large portions, calorie dense foods and lack of exercise that are the real culprits. And here is another dent to the bake sale-obesity argument: the rates of obesity are on the rise in Africa where there has been a reported 35 percent increase in obesity between 1990 and 2000. No bakes sales there!!!

Yes, if kids substitute cake and cookies for a well balanced healthy lunch, that’s not good. If kids don’t get a chance to exercise during the day, that’s not good either. Both will contribute to weight gain.  So back to the initial problem: is banning bake sales going to make a dent in the obesity epidemic?  What about making a rule that everything sold at the bake sale, has to be made with healthy ingredients, limited sugar and no transfats? And how about saying that when any child purchases something at the bake sale, he or she has to demonstrate that they have eaten a healthy lunch and have or plan to exercise that day. And how about this: place the nutritional values and calorie counts on everything sold at the bake sale so we all can know what is in the food we are eating?

Many schools across the country have banned “junk-food” from their vending machines and many are serving soy products. Many have stopped bakes sales completely. Some schools have limited what can be brought into classrooms for birthday parties. But by preventing the bake sales, are we really doing a disservice to the experience of the sales? Are there individuals that learn about giving from the sales? Are we stopping a revenue stream to charities? Are we teaching the right lesson? And will this be effective in limiting obesity? I don’t think anyone can be certain. What I am certain of is that we need to educate our children starting at the ages of two through 10 about nutrition, exercising and portion sizes. We need to bring back the “Home Economics” course of the 1940’s and 50”s and modernize them to focus on healthy eating and cooking and make them a requirement for all kids! Through education, we will be able to defeat this overwhelming and global threat to our children’s future. Banning the bake sale is not the answer changing the bake sale is.

Shouldn’t we focus on teaching kids that eating a healthy lunch packed with fruits, veggies and low fat items is the most important concept? Shouldn’t we teach them that exercising is important in weight control and is good for you?  Shouldn’t we teach to make cookies and cakes with healthy whole grain flour, lower sugar and lower fat and eat those items in moderation?  Aren’t these really the lessons we want them to learn?

Well my Nerdel News readers, the answer is not clear. I always shutter when some of my liberties are being played around with. It took a long time to achieve them and we certainly need to be very careful before we allow them to be summarily dismissed. We definitely need to stop the barrage of high calorie, high fat and highly sweetened foods from entertaining our children. But it’s the education that truly is the key. Food education, fitness education, and health literacy will definitely help our children develop into healthy adults. And, my friends, isn’t that the goal?

My friends, stay fit and healthy the New Nerdel Way!