School lunch rules OK refined grains, low-fat chocolate milk

[Eugene]

Source: Associated Press

By CANDICE CHOI
56 minutes ago

NEW YORK (AP) — The national school lunch program is making room on menus again for noodles, biscuits, tortillas and other foods made mostly of refined grains.

The Trump administration is scaling back contested school lunch standards implemented under the Obama administration including one that required only whole grains be served. The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Thursday only half the grains served will need to be whole grains, a change it said will do away with the current bureaucracy of requiring schools to obtain special waivers to serve select items made with refined grains.

Low-fat chocolate milk will also be allowed again and a goal for limiting sodium will be scrapped. Previously, only fat-free milk could be flavored, although that rule had also been temporarily waived.

The School Nutrition Association, which represents local cafeteria operators and companies like Domino’s Pizza, Kellogg and PepsiCo, had called for the scale back of the whole grain-only requirement, saying it was too difficult for some districts to meet.

-snip-


Read more: https://apnews.com/543dc99a44dc4388a93958f0e2c3cd72

[Sucha NastyWoman]

1. By "refined" do they mean

Processed?

[Eugene]

2. Yes, milled with the bran and the germ removed.

[keithbvadu2]

3. Can we bring back Reagan's 'ketchup as a vegetable' again?

[pangaia]

8. Hey, I love ketchup....

But I rarely eat it...

[Snellius]

19. Except ketchup is a fruit juice.

Tomatoes from the supermarket are vegetables. From your garden they're a fruit. Reagan was truly dumber than Trump but stupid with charm.

[Farmer-Rick]

4. Full of Round Up, pesticides and chemical fertilizers along with those insulin exploding carbs

Bound to shorten your life span and ruin your kidneys at 50. But at least Domino’s Pizza, Kellogg and PepsiCo are making money off our children's lunches and in the end that's all that matters in a capitalist society.

[Honeycombe8]

6. Well, half the grains still have to be whole grain.

That seems fine, given that these are kids, who are hopefully active. And if there's fiber elsewhere in the meal.

[pangaia]

10. Interesting about kids being active.

Somehow, I do not believe that today's 'active kids' are active the way 'we' were when I was a kid-- back in very late 1940's and 1950s.

My mom had no time for soccering me around. She worked and cooked. My dad the same, worked, cleaned house, taught me how to play baseball..

I walked to and from school except when there was a blizzard -- just over a mile.
I WALKED to the parks to play softball, Little League and what have you, probably EVERY day in the summer.....

Gym class

And would often stay out in the evening 'playing' in the courtyard, woods, wherever until dark..stick ball, tackle football, cowboys and Indians( yeah, sorry)

[Honeycombe8]

13. I guess so.

I don't really know what kids do these days, besides digital games.

In my area, kids are very active in school and after school sports. Even the girls. In my day, there were no sports for girls. Locally we have a softball teams & basketball and other sports for girls.

They don't walk anywhere, though. We're in a semi-rural area w/o shoulders & sidewalks most of the places. That plus crime makes it too dangerous.

I go to the nearby park to walk. Otherwise, I have to drive. Can't even ride a bike. (I need to move.)

I was a kid of the 50s. No girl sports, but we spent a lot of time playing outdoors. Mom would even send us outside & lock the doos to make sure we didn't come back in. LOL. We rode bikes, made pies out of mud, made clover necklaces, played on the swingset. Then we'd go to the town park occasionally (playground and pools). Fun days.

[pangaia]

14. That all sounds so familiar, even though I was a boy. (still am, actually)

I also must drive almost everywhere now... not rural but right on the edge...

Humm,.. now that you got me thinking about it.

I am retired.. what's the rush?

2.5 miles to the Y
.6 miles to the grocery.

I already walk the mile to the ;lake where I can walk till my heart's content...
I plan on buying a bike in the spring...

[Honeycombe8]

20. I can't walk because it's too dangerous.

I'm in a semi-rural area. As you say, on the verge of being in the mid-sized city we're a burb of.

No shoulders or sidewalks, with curvy roads. Loose dogs. (a lot of pit bulls in the area - this is a "manly" area). The park is 3 miles away, so that's, what, an hour walk? In dangerous conditions?

I also take my dog, so I need a wide berth to walk. And she would attract loose dogs. Even tho I carry pepper spray with me. So, too dangerous.

If I can't sell my house this spring and get stuck here, I would like to buy a bike. But I won't use it often because I'll have to put it in my car and drive somewhere to ride it. But I could. The state park is 7.5 miles away.

The house is nice. But I made a big mistake moving here. I hope I am able to move.

[Farmer-Rick]

31. You may get stuck, the housing market is cooling off if you don't live in a hot area.

I'm stuck with my farm until the market improves. At least I can grow my own food and know it has no chemicals.

But like you there is no place to walk or run on the road. And I know what you mean about those roving pit bulls. I fenced in all my farm to keep those dog packs away. But farming gives me enough exercise that I really don't worry about it.

[Honeycombe8]

35. Yes, with rising interest rates, house buyers are a lot less, now.

I bought at the worst time, and would be trying to sell at the worst time. But I think a recession is coming, so better to sell in 2019 than wait for 2020, since I probably couldn't sell in a recession.

With farming, I bet you DO get all your exercise in. But there's "activity," and then there's focused exercise, which is different. Still, my father is in his 80s and still takes care of his half acre alone. He's in excellent health. I think it's all that activity.

There's a gym nearby, so I will probably join that. But I try to take a short daily walk with my dog every day. And do some exercises at home.

I have a half acre, but don't do much in it, since I'm hoping to sell.

[Farmer-Rick]

24. Even the whole grains have Round Up and other chemicals

And whole grains still have a ton of carbs to get your insulin going and your fat stores up.

[Honeycombe8]

25. Yeah, I can't do anything about the pesticides & chemicals. As for carbs...

whole grains cut the effect of carbs. Fiber has an effect on insulin reaction. Bread is still high-carb, but that has to do with what a person chooses to eat. Carbs and fiber are good for the body and general health, up to a point (like anything else).

I gave up all forms of meat, though, except poultry. Certain kinds of beef cause cancer. And beef is generally not great for health, I've read. I gave up pork and such, too, but I never ate much of that, anyway.

[Farmer-Rick]

30. I cut my carbs to no more than 50 a day and it made me feel like a new man

My mood improved my arthritis pain and swelling reduced significantly. My belly shrunk. I had more energy, more pain free days. That was 2 years ago. I'm never going back.

If I cut out meat, I have very little remaining to eat.

[Honeycombe8]

33. LOL!

I'm not a big bread eater. I've read that the worst foods to eat are white carbs (potatoes, white bread, white rice, etc.). So I avoid those. Those fast metabolizing carbs are the ones that add fat to the belly (like beer).

But I eat a lot of carbs in the form of fruits, some veggies, misc. things. No a big bread eater, but I DO eat whole grain sandwiches during the week (no processed meats). All those things are pretty much slow metabolizing, and are chocked full of anti-oxidants, vitamins, minerals, and fiber.

The times my carb count gets out of hand is when I eat shredded wheat. I LOVE shredded wheat...and I eat a huge bowl of it, with milk (also carbs). Shredded wheat is all carb, just about. I can't help it. It's a weakness.

I have a spreadsheet where I record what I eat periodically. I have the requirements I set for myself in the top row. I have that carbs should be in the range of 45%-65% of total calories. I also have the requirements for fat, protein, fiber, sodium, etc. So how many grams of carbs I'd eat depends on the total calories. But I sort of know when I'm overdoing the carbs. That shredded wheat...I need to give it up, really.

Sodium is very important, too. Fiber. Fat. (Surprisingly, I tend not to eat enough fat on many days.) I strive for a balance I devised for myself.

[Honeycombe8]

5. Half still have to be whole grain. That seems reasonable.

As long as the total amount of grains doesn't overwhelm the meal.

Low fat choco milk seems fine, also, to me.

This is a lot better than what I was given to eat in school.

[Trump Must Go]

7. I don't know

I am a 71-year-old man who has always found processed foods taste better than foods that are "good for me." But I can understand wanting children to eat healthy meals in school. But once a person is over 18, the food police must go away.

[pangaia]

11. Why do you think they taste better? Serious question.

I am 75,

[Trump Must Go]

15. I do not know why white bread tastes better then whole wheat

Personal choice, or engineered to be that way (sugar for sweetness or salt)

[pangaia]

16. Good points, I tagree,,,

Makers of... processed foods.. KNOW the formula to addict us.. SALT, SUGAR and FAT.

It works on me, that's for sure. If I just ONCE fall off the wagon of what I, at least, consider healthy food for me... I'm in BIG trouble.

it is NOT easy, that's for sure.

I was recently in Kyoto for just 5 days, EATING my way across the city with a dear friend there...
I lost 25 pounds in about 11 weeks before I went......

Back now about 2 1/2 weeks..... still ok.. but the potato chips aisle beckons.

[Honeycombe8]

21. Not to me. I prefer the nutty taste of whole grain.

Or wheat, in general. White bread tastes mushy and spongey and bland to me.

I only eat white bread when it's that kind that restaurants have...sourdough or french bread or whatever, with the hard outer part. But that's not the traditional white bread.

[Honeycombe8]

22. Really? I prefer foods that are close to nature. My favorite foods are fruits...

apples, mangos, bananas, satsumas, figs, berries, cantaloup, watermelon. Nothing better.

For processed foods, I love cheese. Cheese cheese cheese. My favorite is fried chicken! Yum! I can feel my arteries hardening as I eat it, but it's worth it.

Eating junk food is tasty sometimes, but it makes me lose energy and feel not so good. When I do junk food, I love me some tater tots (I have them once a year), holiday candy, nachos.

[The Genealogist]

9. School lunch certainly has changed

One of the meals commonly served in school when I growing up was, I kid you not, bologna on white bread with nachos. We also had a lot of pizza, tacos, cinnamon rolls and other less than healthy foods. Of course, my family didn't eat much healthier at home, either.

[pangaia]

12. I don;t even remember what was served in school.....umm.. ill bet fried fish on friday,,

spaghetti, meat loaf and steamed until dead veggies...
I do remember I often brought a lunch.. What it was???

No idea.. PB&J ?

[keithbvadu2]

17. I remember tuna pea wiggle.

I remember tuna pea wiggle.

Tuna and peas in a white sauce.

[pangaia]

18. Oh jesus you're right.

OH UGGHH that was gross....

[Farmer-Rick]

26. Went to a PA elementary school where the Pennsylvania Dutch were cooking

in the school cafeteria. They made some of the most delicious food I can remember eating and my mother was a pretty good cook. They served the best chicken corn chowder I have ever had in my life. Their secret, I overheard in the lunch line, was saffron. I bet it's all processed foods now.

[The Genealogist]

28. Chicken corn chowder sounds WAY exotic for school lunch, to me

And with saffron, no less! I'm guessing it was delicious.

My own favorite school lunch was the beef vegetable soup with toasted (not grilled) cheese sandwich.

I know school lunches are much maligned, but I appreciate them more now. I know that there was very little that wasn't actually cooked from scratch. They got flour, sugar, ground beef, seasonings, etc and made them into meals.

[Farmer-Rick]

32. Yeah, I overheard the lunch ladies arguing about it

The one was scolding the other for bringing in her own saffron. Saying someone could be allergic.....though I never heard of anyone being allergic to saffron except maybe bumble bees. I made a note to ask my Mom what saffron was.

[BumRushDaShow]

34. Oooo... next time I make some corn chowder, I'll add some saffron.

Sounds like one of them must have been growing a patch of their own crocuses to collect it.

[GulfCoast66]

23. Skim/low-fat milk are processed products. They are unhealthy.

Because of genetic luck my body can process lactose. But as our country diversified that is less true for many of our citizens.

Organic Whole Milk, preferably grass fed is the only milk that provides the nutrients that milk did 100 years ago. And if we serve that fermented it is much healthier.

And frankly, today’s kids would probably prefer organic whole milk yogurt and fruit to processed milk.

Chocolate milk? It is my kryponite! It’s availability is the only thing that will make me eat a doughnut!

[Honeycombe8]

27. I love skim milk. Yes, it's processed. So is organic milk.

I don't drink much milk. Usually with cereal in the summer (most of the year where I am).

I don't buy organic anything. I can find or afford organic things generally and consistently, and can't be sure they're really organic. So I keep it simple and stick to a plain, fairly healthy diet. I minimize eating processed foods to some extent (maybe to a large extent). (Today I had....nuts from a container, raw fruit, a salad with lettuce & boiled eggs & tomato & raw peppers topped with some Light Caesar dressing. So I guess I do steer clear of processed foods, compared to mos.)

Everything in moderation. Well, not EVERYTHING.

[GulfCoast66]

29. Wow. You eat better than me.

The only dairy I routinely consume is grass fed whole milk yogurt and fruit smoothie with flax seed for breakfast. Well, and whole milk in my coffee.

Other than that I cook with limited processed food. I enjoy chopping veggies and we eat lots of them. Normally in soups, gumbos and stews.

But you are entirely correct. Moderation is the key.