Spark Kevin Li, Dana Sand Editor-in-Chief Sally Ryan Business Manager Radhika Madhavan Design Manager Caroline Tompkins Photo Manager Tyler Castner, Anna Hartman Managing Editor Amanda Kaine Copy Director Katrina Echternacht Layout Director Lauren Ellis, Dan Garrett, Victoria Liang Entertainment Editor Alyssa Davis, Kim Shearer Feature Editor Meredith Bleuer, Liv Devitt Lifestyle Editor Jill Bange, Ariadne Souroutzidis, Kavya Sreevalsan News Editor Ryan Fay, Lisa Liu, Nitya Sreevalsan Opinion Editor Justine Chu, Mason Hood, Lucy Stephenson Package Editor Sarah Fanning, Faiz Siddiqui, Sarah Wilkinson Sports Editor Brian Baltis, Logan Schneider, Heidi Yang, Sarah Zins Art Section Editor Eric Muenchen, Dan Turner Photo Section Editor Sarah Craig Business Associate Allison Korson, Mackenzie White Public Relations Director Anjana Jagpal Public Relations Associate Erika Andler Subscriptions Coordinator Brittany Bennett Survey Coordinator Eric Bloomberg Webmaster Spark is a publication that is produced at Lakota East High School. The magazine is completely studentgenerated through the efforts of the Journalism I, Journalism II and Journalism III-Honors classes. The publication material may not always reflect the views of the Lakota Local School District. Content is controlled and edited by the staff editors. The staff will publish only legally protected speech adhering to the legal definitions of libel, obscenity and the invasions of privacy. The publication is produced every five weeks. Production costs are covered through advertising sales, subscription sales and fundraisers. Advertising information can be obtained by writing to the business manager at the address below or at sparkbusiness@gmail.com. The purpose of Spark is to inform the students, faculty, subscribers and community members of news, information and issues that may influence or affect them. Spark accepts news releases, guest columns and sports information releases. Spark is a member of the National Scholastic Press Association, the Ohio Scholastic Media Association, the Northeastern Ohio Scholastic Press Association, the Journalism Education Association, Quill and Scroll and the Columbia Scholastic Press Association. Spark c/o Lakota East High School 6840 Lakota Lane Liberty Township, OH 45044 Phone: (513) 759-8615 ext 15118 Fax: (513) 759-8633 Email: lehs.spark@gmail.com
From The Editor When I first heard that the Cookie Monster had joined the side of healthy eating, I knew it was just the beginning. To the dismay of many students, East has substituted regular pop with diet pop, provided 10calorie Vitamin Water in lieu of sugary juices and replaced fried chips with baked chips. These changes parallel the new federal laws concerning the desperate state of American health. On Sept. 1, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack announced Team Nutrition Training Grants for a total of approximately $5.8 million across 18 states. Ohio, one of the 18 states, will be receiving $226,461 “for supporting the implementation of United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) nutrition requirements and the Dietary Guidelines for Americans in school meals,” according to teamnutrition.usda.gov. “Improving the overall health and well-being of America’s children is a top priority of the Obama Administration as we work to confront the obesity epidemic,” Vilsack says. But the issue isn’t just providing healthy food – it’s convincing students to eat it. New York City public schools chef Jorge Collazo seems to have successfully convinced more than a million kids to eat a healthy, school-provided lunch. “We don’t say, ‘Eat this. It’s healthy for you.’ That’s probably the worst thing you can do,” Collazo explains. “We want to make it invisible to them.” And he successfully did so by “weaning” students off of high fat foods rather than distressing them with a bombardment of changes. For instance, he phased in wheat bread sandwiches one slice of bread at a time. This idea is the key to successfully altering the lifestyles of students, which is a necessity considering students who eat a healthy, well-balanced diet have been proven to perform better in school. Yet, according to the USDA, only two percent of youth meet all the recommendations of the Food Guide Pyramid. In order to make a real impact, East needs to alter not only the food offered but also the mindset of the students. This issue also goes beyond the school setting. In recent years, Americans have begun to pay closer attention to their health. In 2008, 28.7 percent of Ohioans were obese, and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention now estimates that two-thirds of all American adults are on a diet at any given time but that only five percent keep the weight off. And the amount of organic food bought in the U.S. is estimated to be $1.11 billion in 2011, an increase of 70 percent from 2006, according to Michigan State University. This new obsession was exemplified in July, when a Dearborn County woman sued Applebee’s after discovering that the Cajun Lime Tilapia dish on the Weight Watchers portion of their menu claimed to have fewer calories, less fat and fewer “points” than in actuality. And she wasn’t the only one. She combined forces with a distraught Kansas citizen to sue the restaurant chain on charges of “fraud and negligence, as well as a conspiracy to conceal the accurate nutritional information from consumers.” While this suit was a little drastic, it did serve a vital message to Americans: even following the numbers and labels may not be as helpful as one may think. Therefore, Spark has taken this opportunity to explore food offered at East, as well as U.S. diets, organic food and dietary supplements to see if they really give consumers the benefits they desire. Dieticians, organic food growers, USDA workers and community members not only discuss society’s false assumptions regarding these topics, but also divulge the widely-overlooked truths.
“East needs to alter not only the food offered, but also the mindset of the students.”
5 | Spark | October 22, 2009