With the Delhi government requesting schools to ban junk food in its canteens, children may be the biggest beneficiaries
By Ramesh Menon
Hungry kya? Are you planning to pick up the phone, call a nearby fast food outlet and order some of the mouth-watering delicacies dripping with cheese that you have been craving for? What about also ordering those succulent pieces of red meat? And that chocolate-topped cake and a bottle of sweetened beverage to wash it all down? Before you dial the number, think of why the Delhi government has now asked schools to consider banning junk food in its canteens and instead serve fresh and healthy food.
They also have been directed to create awareness through meetings and competitions about the ill-effects of foods high in fat, sugar and salt both with parents and students. Also on the list of food to be shunned are carbonated beverages and energy drinks with high caffeine content.
This unusual move comes after the Delhi High Court had last year directed the Delhi government and the Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) to consider issuing directions to schools to implement the guidelines even before the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) frames rules under the Food Safety and Standards Act.
The court was hearing a PIL filed by Uday Foundation, an NGO, to curb the sale of junk food and unhealthy eating habits among children in Delhi. Directions were issued under the Delhi School Education Act. Rahul Verma, the founder of Uday Foundation, told India Legal: “What drove us to do it was the fact that we were actually making our healthy children sick as they were being tempted with unhealthy food.”
Corporations that deal with fast food products design it to be addictive in nature with high levels of salts, sugars and fats that make you crave them even when you are not hungry. Eating a sugary cupcake or doughnut may temporarily spike your blood sugar levels making you feel happy and satisfied but that is only a temporary feeling. Later, the craving begins again. You are truly trapped and enslaved.
But one should avoid fast food as much as possible as it has a high level of refined carbohydrates that ends up with the blood sugar fluctuating. When that happens, it can lead to anxiety, fatigue or a sense of confusion. As it has a high content of sugar and fats, it immediately satiates your cravings.
Fast foods also have a generous dose of artificial flavorings and preservatives like sodium benzoate that increases hyperactivity. It can also lead to hyperacidity.
Childhood obesity is becoming a major concern in most schools in India. This is ironical as malnutrition is a problem. Seduced by slick advertising, unsuspecting children fall for junk food that is aggressively promoted. There is enough evidence to show the clear linkage between consumption of junk food and ailments like diabetes, hypertension and heart diseases.
Globally, banning junk foods in schools is considered an important measure to decrease juvenile obesity and other related non-communicable diseases such as hypertension, diabetes, dental problems and a lack of self-esteem due to excess weight which invites ridicule from classmates.
Junk food also adds inches to your waistline and makes you sluggish. A study published in The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition indicates that healthy people who ate junk food for only five days performed poorly on cognitive tests that measured attention, speed and mood. It can lead to deterioration of memory as a poor or toxic diet can trigger off chemical reactions that could lead to inflammation in the hippocampus of the brain. This is associated with memory and special recognition.
Excess consumption of trans fats in fried and processed foods can send mixed signals to the brain which makes it difficult to process what you have eaten and how hungry you are. This is probably why you end up overeating.
A study conducted at the University of Montreal on mice showed that they suffered from withdrawal symptoms after their regular junk food diet was discontinued. Just imagine. Do we also suffer from similar symptoms? Yes, we do. When that happens, we find it difficult to deal with stress and get depressed. So, in order to get back that comfortable feeling, we turn again to junk food, only complicating the process.
It is a vicious circle. We also lose out on essential nutrients like amino acid tryptophan, the lack of which can increase feelings of depression.
Healthy brain functions require a daily dose of essential fatty acids like omega-6 and omega-3. Deficiency of these two elements increases the risk of attention deficit disorder, dementia and bipolar disorder and other brain-related problems.
A draft of FSSAI guidelines issued in October 2015 on making available wholesome, nutritious, safe and hygienic food to school children was submitted to the court. This direction by the court came after that. It said there must be a restriction of food that has high fat, sugar and salt like chips, burgers and aerated drinks in and around schools. It also called for creation of a canteen policy and school health education programs to create awareness. The guidelines will apply to the rest of the country.
CBSE has also shot off directions to schools all over India and hopefully, this will have a positive effect. Some of the key principles of these guidelines are:
– Benefits of balanced, fresh and traditional food cannot be replaced
– Schools are not the right places for promoting foods high in fat, salt and sugar
– Children are not the best judge of their food choices
Sunita Narain, director-general of the Centre for Science and Environment, who has been campaigning against junk food in schools, said: “The guidelines are scientific, comprehensive and well establish the harmful effects of junk foods. The essence throughout the document is to not allow the availability of such foods in schools. If well implemented, maintaining the spirit of it, the guidelines will help avoid the looming health crisis in this country.”
Adds Chandra Bhushan, deputy director-general, CSE: “In the absence of mandatory regulations, we hope that schools will act proactively and prohibit junk foods such as carbonated soft drinks, chocolates and chips in school canteens to promote healthy food habits among school children.”
Mothers and school teachers will tell you that it is not easy anymore to wean children away from junk food as the advertising is designed to trap them in such a way that it seems healthy. Miranda Ingudam, mother of two Delhi school going girls, aged 11 and 6, tries her best not to visit food courts in malls as it is full of junk food. “As a mother, it is very difficult to manage children who are constantly demanding to eat it as the advertising of junk food is very attractive and persuasive. At the most I give in only once or twice a month as it is impossible otherwise,” she said.
But, at least a beginning has been made.