PORTLAND, Maine — Maine high schools are plastered with promotions for junk foods despite a state law that prohibits marketing unhealthy snacks and drinks on public school grounds, according to a new study.
Posters and signs for junk foods appeared in 85 percent of 20 Maine high schools examined by the study led by Michele Polacsek, an associate professor of public health at the University of New England. Schools violating the law had an average of nearly a dozen of the promotions, with many of the ads springing up far beyond the cafeteria doors, the study found.
“We were not surprised to find that most of the state’s high schools marketed unhealthy foods and drinks where those items are sold and consumed, but we were very surprised to learn that so many schools still promote unhealthy fare in teachers’ lounges and near athletic areas, including gyms and sports fields,” Polacsek said in a press release.
The marketing appeared on walls, vending machines, scoreboards, coolers and inside yearbooks, among other spots. Coke and Pepsi products topped the list of the most commonly advertised junk foods.
To bring schools into compliance with the law, the Maine Beverage Association, working with the Maine Principal’s Association, replaced more than 150 signs at more than 50 schools, according to Newell Augur, executive director of the beverage group.
The study appears in the March-April edition of the journal Public Health Reports. It was funded in part by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation through its national Healthy Eating Research program.
Researchers visited the high schools in 2010 to conduct the study, which was the first to assess schools’ compliance with the law.
Since 1985, federal law has prohibited the sale of “foods of minimal nutritional value” during public school mealtimes. Maine expanded its law to include junk foods sold anytime during the schoolday, and in 2007 became the first state to outlaw brand-specific marketing of unhealthy foods at schools.
The federal standard defines unhealthy foods as those with less than 5 percent of the recommended daily intake of eight key nutrients. Soda, hard candies, cookies and gum fall into the category.
Maine’s law makes exceptions for foods sold to the public at events held on school property outside school hours, as well as for culinary arts programs.
Schools participating in the study overwhelmingly supported limiting students’ exposure to ads for unhealthy foods, but the majority wanted more help to meet the law’s requirements. Many administrators didn’t even know about the ban.
The Maine Department of Education had a different take on schools’ compliance with the law. The department reviews nutrition programs at each of the state’s 639 public schools every five years, including checking for food product advertising in cafeterias and common spaces, according to David Connerty-Marin, a spokesman for the Education Department.
“Our experience is schools are pretty good about it, and when something comes up, it’s inadvertent,” he said.
Connerty-Marin said he had not reviewed the UNE study.
The Maine Public Health Association called on the Education Department and the beverage industry to support schools in eliminating soda ads, particularly on scoreboards.
“Given the high rate of overweight and obesity experienced by Maine children and the link between marketing of foods to children and unhealthy diets, advertisement of unhealthy food and beverages should not be present in our schools,” said MPHA board president Lisa Harvey-McPherson.
Polacsek agreed that limiting marketing of unhealthy foods was crucial to making schools healthier.
“During the schoolday, kids are a captive audience, and they shouldn’t be bombarded with ads for junk foods,” she said in the release.
The results of the study were released Wednesday at the Physical Activity and Nutrition Summit 2012 in Augusta.
Big Brother at it’s worst. “Leave them kids alone”.
http://www.azlyrics.com/p/pinkfloyd.html
While I agree with the sentiment that we have too much government intervention in many ways, I feel that in this case it’s the lesser of two evils. I’d much rather the kids be receiving some sort of healthy living and eating message from the government than a junk food ad from a corporation while at school. If left unobstructed, such corporations LOVE to market to children- setting them up for a lifetime of unhealthy behaviors. It seems to me that by restricitng advertising the government is acting more as big brother to the corporations than to the children. Personally, I’m ok with that :)
Apparently by “Leave them kids alone” you mean subject them t0 an onslaught of corporate advertising while they attend school.
Exactly, think of it as spring training for living off beer and oodles of noodles when they go to college
I’m sorry, but people like me are stuck paying higher insurance premiums to cover the cost of obesity-related diseases; we need the government to intervene for the benefit of everyone in our great society. Same thing for tobacco; I can’t wait until the government will get its act together and ban that poison too.
Joe Stalin, Chaiman Mao, The Furher, and Obama, all said the same thing.
“We we need the government to intervene for the benefit of everyone”
And China is about to eclipse the United States economically….and “owns” our debt now……as for Mr. Obama – I can only hope he moves further left for the benefit of the nation!
I’m sorry, but we need government direction as obesity-related illnesses raise people’s health insurance rates (people like me). I for one am happy the government is taking a firm direction and action in this matter. I hope though that the next administration will continue this work and expand it to tobacco – I will be so happy when it’s illegal.
We do NOT need government telling our kids how to eat healthy. That should start at home with the parents.
Tobacco will never be illegal keep dreaming.
If parents were doing their job and teaching about and feeding their children healthy food, the government wouldn’t need to step in. You may feel offended that someone’s trying to ‘tell you what to do’, but the 17% of overweight children in the US (30% in Maine) are all the proof we need that parents and other adults aren’t doing their jobs. Adults buy the food that children eat. Children emulate what they see the adults in their lives eating. Overweight children cost our state alone about 2 million dollars a year. Seriously, how well are these parents doing their jobs now?
When the Government starts telling us what we can and can’t eat, the country that you and I grew up with (you know,one with real FREEDOMS) will no longer exist. I for one, would rather my kids CHOOSE to eat a twinkie or a small bag of chips now and then than be dictated to by some Big Brother program. The consequences of which are MUCH more alarming to me than a little “junk” food.
But the problem isn’t ‘a little junk food’. A good diet with the occassional Twinkie doesn’t make someone obese. Consistant poor choices and inactivity do. I believe the story was speaking of not advertising junk food in schools, not telling parents what they can’t feed their kids. So what if there are regulations on unhealthy foods in public places? Buy all the Twinkies you want and send them to school for lunch, get a neon sign for them in your home, whatever…. No one’s trying to tell you what you can’t feed your kids, just that advertising and supply of junk food in schools needs to end.
Perhaps, but why should we (everyone) keep paying higher insurance premiums due to the hedonistic practices of other citizens? Want to cut government spending, your insurance premiums, and stop corporate advertising to our children? Government should make those who “play” pay – its for the benefit of everyone, financially and health-wise. Its just common sense.
We need intervention by the government because too many parents do not do their job (teaching their children proper nutrition) and this negatively impacts society at great cost. As for tobacco – the noose has been tightening! One day that poison will be gone!
Making tobacco illegal will do nothing but create a lucrative untaxed black market for tobacco products. However, tobacco advertising on TV was prohibited back in 1971, and everyone seems to be OK with that. Junk food distributors and fast food restaurants are peddling unhealthy products and should be limited in their influence on kids, as the tobacco companies are. But making something illegal simply because it’s bad for you is overreaching. There, I’ve said my piece, now I’m gonna go out on my back porch and spark one.
So we the people should make oxy’s, pot, and bath salts legal by using that logic? Sorry, but our citizens are demonstrating they can’t regulate themselves. And please stop smoking – it makes my insurance premiums go up and you’ll only die sooner.
Nyet, nyet, comrade!
Yay, someone who thinks outside of the fact-free radically conservative bubble!! You’re clearly not from Maine originally.
I wrote to Obama’s beard. She’ll be in Maine to personally rip down those posters. Let’s Move!
Why are they using a picture of Lepages desk as the picture to the story?
I thought that was either fat girl Pingree or dumpy Cutler’s desk myself…
Maybe. It has an economics text and the person was doing math. As opposed to say the, “Math is hard. Lets find someone with money leftover and take it from them” liberal arts crowd.
“The marketing appeared on walls, vending machines, scoreboards, coolers and inside yearbooks, among other spots. Coke and Pepsi products topped the list of the most commonly advertised junk foods.” Let’s dump Coke and Pepsi and bring in Budweiser and Sam Adams. It would make the fans more happy. :-)
OWS people are looking for something to do, Let’s get them to do this.
Yes, we are looking for jobs that the 1% continues to ship overseas, all the while racking up the cash through tax loopholes and breaks.
God, when I was in school, you got a tray, a bit of mystery meat or mystery stew, a stewed tomato, a tablespoon of mashed potatoes, a milk and an applesauce. We never complained. They need to get greasy pizza out of school, though. We all like it, but there are other options that are healthier. And as long as there is a water fountain around every corner, can the vending machines.
“ we were very surprised to learn that so many schools still promote unhealthy fare in teachers’ lounges” Why is this surprising? Teachers are adults who are capable of making their own decisions about nutrition. In that vein I expected the article to continue with “and we were overwhelmed with shock that grocery stores and bars were filled with unhealthy choices”
So we spent money on a study to tell us kids like junk food…and now it’s news? We don’t have bigger problems in this state and in this country? Should we discuss how much TV people are watching to make them susceptible to marketing? Pretty sure we have control over how much marketing we receive….or do you think TV/radio/websites really exist to entertain you and make you happy? How about people start taking responsibility for their choices?
Considering obesity-related illnesses (AKA, PREVENTABLE illnesses) cost our country billions of dollars a year-yah. I think it’s news. Obesity is one of the leading causes for the rise in our healthcare costs. In case you are unaware, obesity leads to diabetes, heart disease, high blood pressure…the list goes on. What people aren’t getting is that if their choices affected only themselves, then more power to them! But if their choices cause me to have a harder time finding affordable healthcare or increase my healthcare costs because more uninsured or underinsured folks are being hospitalized for obesity-related ailments and the rest of the community has to pick up the slack then it is no longer a personal choice. Something obviously isn’t working.
Do these public health officials ever take a look at the calorie or health content of the lunch items served on these grounds? I find it hard to believe that a O Calorie Sobe Lifewater has more harmful ingredients than the Pepperoni Pizza that was served this past Monday at my child’s school. WE will never get to our goals of reducing obesity in society until a complete lifestyle change is introduced and implemented across the board. “Big Soda” is the easy scapegoat if you ask me, and does nothing but portray mental laziness. Any food or beverage can be consumed in moderation as part of a healthy diet. It is the overinduglence that drives health issues. That mindset, starts at home.
Yes, carb-filled food is bad. But advertising has no place in the schools. Soda is the #1 contributor to youth diabetes…
after genetics I should say.
Where does the bus stop 99% of the time after an away game? HINT: There are generally Arches or Kings involved. Do we outlaw this?
Why not?
At least those kids are getting exercise…
WE are the 99%!!!!
The real sad part is we have useless buearocrats/hacks wasting taxpayer money doing studies on this crap. Shows how far education has sunk when we only worry if a Coke sign is on the side of a vending machine in a school lobby. Of course this doesnt suprise me because this is all the arrogant hacks in Augusta do, under failed Baldacci/Pingree/Caine leadeship.
True that! My kid’s right to diabetes is a civil liberty that BIG GOV’T is infringing upon.
my kids ate 1 meal at school and I dont need the Gov telling me what they should eat. Of course 90% of the time they brought their own food since I dont get a freebie off the taxpayer!
Sorry I dont need the Govenrment to save me from myself!
Other parents kids DO need the government telling them what NOT to eat. These kids are more obese than they have ever been. About 25% of their diet is obtained from school. The health problems that these kids will most certainly develop if the gov’t doesn’t intervene will cost billions more in health care premiums for all of us. SO in other words, fat kids affect OUR wallets. The gov’t isn’t always bad. Shut Fox News off.
You need to shut MSNB off!
Yes the Gov can come up with guide lines and parents can follow them if they choose, but we dont need to turn into the nanny state where a coke machine needs to be removed from school lobbys where kids buying a soda (with their own money I might add) can do so without worrying about the food gestapo arresting them. You need to turn off Rachel Madcow, Comrade Chris and all the other lefties. Also please stop wasting my tax money on stupid studies like this.
It’s hilarious that people are opposed to things that actually benefit society i.e. the well-being of your own otherwise tubby children, but when tax dollars are taken and used for invading countries for extremely questionable reasons, these same people say nothing or are in full support…Are we among the most backwards states in the USA? Maybe.
Ignorant and proud of it! Maine: The Way Life Should Be. When you live in the woods, are paranoid of the government, only get one channel and it’s Fox News and don’t value education in the least.
I say run the ads if the food corporations will pay for the exposure! That would go a long way toward fixing our education budget problems.