[Islam-Online- Society]

A recent report in The New York Times caused real concern about the health of kids in public schools. It's not about overcrowding, large class sizes or even violence in our schools. It's about sugar and caffeine and what high school and even middle school students drink on campus.

Coca-Cola and Pepsi have been making deals with public entities to give them exclusive rights to sell their soft drinks. This has caused some controversy. However, the largest outcry has come regarding soft drink deals with public schools. Over 150 schools in more than half the states in the U.S. have signed exclusive deals with either Coke or Pepsi. Schools, hard-pressed for the money to buy uniforms and stadiums and the like, are happily signing these contracts. The idea behind the program is to create lifetime Coke or Pepsi drinkers. The corporations hope to find their drinkers at younger ages and socialize them to one taste over another. Not only are they assuring higher sales by making more fizzy drink machines available, they are hoping to create lasting relationships with these young drinkers. In a report on National Public Radio, the soft drink industry openly admitted to targeting this young market, similar to the practice of tobacco companies.

The danger to the children is the drastic increase in soft drink consumption, especially over nutritional drinks, such as water, milk and juice. In fact, some schools are even leaving the National School Lunch Program because it has restrictions on selling soft drinks. Other schools have found loopholes in the program. They sign lucrative soft drink contracts, then give away the soda free to the students. This way, they retain the contracts with both the National School Lunch Program and the soft drink companies. The money from the soft drink companies more than offsets the profit loss of free sodas to students.

An important consideration is why the National School Program has such restrictions on soft drinks. Nutrition is a significant part of the schools' responsibility towards its students. In many cases, students have two out of three meals at school. Some students have their only meals at school. The average soft drink has no nutritional value, beyond about 150 calories per serving. And young children drinking sodas over milk or water are at risk of being overweight and in other ways unhealthy. They are also prone to develop long-term unhealthy eating habits. There has been a general upward trend in obesity and inactivity, as well as soft drink consumption, among children.

The move toward commercialization of public education is a dangerous one. Last March, two students were suspended from their high school for wearing Pepsi t-shirts on a school-designated Coca-Cola shirt day. Schools, overburdened and underfunded, do not always have the luxury of simply saying no. The amount of money offered is large, and the risks are easily ignored. It is very possible that these children are receiving a better education and more resources. However, the responsibility of the school to the student goes beyond merely academic education.

Society