THE BAD NEWS: One in seven children is obese, reveals a report by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Childhood obesity is linked to life-threatening diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and heart disease. Part of the problem is that when kids want a snack at school, their choices are nutritionally bankrupt sodas and chips laden with sugar and fat from a vending machine.
THE GOOD NEWS: Natural foods companies are helping students make healthy snack choices. Stonyfield Farms, an organic yogurt maker, is placing vending machines with organic lowfat yogurt, string cheese, organic milk, carrots and dip, dried fruit, and pita chips in schools in Rhode Island, California, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and New York—with more on the way. White Wave sells Silk soymilk in machines in Los Angeles and Texas. To apply for a healthy vending machine or to enter Stonyfield Farm’s Good for You! Healthy Vending Contest, check Stonyfield.com.