As the debate over childhood obesity waddles on, the question of snack and soda machines in schools continues to attract wide attention. There are three schools of thought:
1. “Experts” want to ban all snack and soda machines in schools. They argue that easy access to tasty treats adds jelly rolls to adolescent tummies and thighs.
2. Teachers and school administrators have mixed views of the issue. (A.) The revenue received from the machines is often hefty, and can be used to fund essential resources and/or services. (B.) But when students bring snacks and soda to classes, as they inevitably do, soda spills, noisy wrappers, and chocolaty fingers can be a real nuisance for teachers.
A study published in September 2008 issue of the American Journal of Preventative Medicine hypothesized that the “experts” were correct. Researchers wanted to know whether there was a relationship between obesity-related eating behaviors and the presence of snack and soda machines in schools. Much to their surprise, they found little relationship between the two. They concluded,
This study provided little evidence for associations of environmental factors in the school environment with soft drink and snack consumption. Individual cognitions appeared to be stronger correlates of intake than physical school-environmental factors.
Obesity-related eating behaviors appeared to be associated with individual cognitions (attitudes, norms, modeling, perceived behavioral control, and intentions), although the effect sizes were rather modest.
The bottom line is that banning snack and soda machines at schools is not as important as adults instilling and modeling sound “cognitions” toward nutrition, exercise, and health.
