Dr. William V. Raszka, our Associate Editor, offers the following insight into a current topic in the news:One of my sons is a professional pizza maker. I asked him what constitutes a vegetable pizza. He looked at me quizzically and replied a vegetable pizza is defined as one that has vegetable toppings. I guess members of Congress did not consult my son when they refused to provide funding to support the Agriculture Department’s new guidelines for the $11 billion federally subsidized school lunch program.
Based on 2009 recommendations by the Institute of Medicine, the Agriculture Department sought to limit the amount of starchy vegetables and sodium in school lunches and increase the number of servings of fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. The goal was to provide nutritious lunches and help fight the childhood obesity epidemic. Some school districts balked, however, and complained that the cost associated with the changes, about 14 cents for each school lunch, were inappropriate in these tough financial times.
As reported in The New York Times (U.S.: November 15, 2011), a number of companies, trade organizations, and lobbying groups vehemently protested the proposed rules. Responding to complaints, Congress voted to block the proposed potato limits. Language requiring less sodium and more whole grains was removed from the spending bill. And, the amount of tomato paste on a slice of pizza must still count as a vegetable serving. The Agriculture Department had sought to change the current guidelines and define tomato paste as a vegetable only if the serving was one-fourth cup or more. This would be in keeping with how other vegetables and fruits are accounted for in the school lunch program.
Because of the requirement to serve a minimum number of vegetables each week, the decision means that pizza is still counted as a vegetable, children who eat a pizza every day for lunch are eating their vegetables, and school districts serving pizza and French fries are in compliance. It also shows just how difficult addressing the obesity epidemic will be. If French fries and pizza are the staple of countless subsidized school lunches, the future looks less than appetizing.
Noted by WVR, MD
*This filler excerpt can be found in the January 2012 Pediatrics print journal p.86, or via online here.
