We Want Our Soda

This past school year, the Winnipeg School Division has complied with the province and the rest of North America and gone with the whole banning junk food thing. After doing some research I have concluded a few things.

One, It is very difficult to find information on this ban, other than the very confusing Manitoba School Nutrition Handbook. I have yet to find somewhere where it states that junk food is banned. In fact on page 52 of the handbook it states No foods are banned from school and we will occasionally have treats at special events. However, we will be making healthy choices most of the time. So, was it necessary to ban junk food?
Even if this was made in 2006, maybe an update would be appreciated?

Two, everyone says that this is all to prevent child obesity and promote good health. Now this makes perfect sense, but whatever happened to being active and exercising? At my school, we are quite athletic in our activities, and still had sodas freely sold. Now sodas are gone, and all I can see from the school are complaints.

Three, this decision isnt making anyone happy, maybe a nutritionist here and there, but no students. After all, the students are what are important. We want the students to come to school.

And four, I am tired of the government stating the obvious. Yes we know that eating junk food everyday is bad. We know we need our proper food groups to be at our best. And we know that the best students are those that eat healthy. We also know that this is common sense. So know that we know.

Anyways, to my point, I must first state that at my school, every Friday, we have Pizza Days. We could buy pizza for lunch, as well as a soda. Now, we can get juice and water instead of soda. Also, gone are sport drinks. For an athletic school, I dont see why we cant keep the sport drinks. And dont say because its not healthy. We know its meant for physical activity. Anyways, Im not saying that we should eliminate all healthy food. I propose that we just sell the non-healthy stuff right beside the healthy stuff, at a higher cost perhaps. Just to make up for all the extra stock everyone has to buy.

Also, from a September 19, 2007 CBC news article,

the Healthy Living Minister Kerri Irvin-Ross acknowledged that some schools are going through "an adjustment period.
"As a minister, I haven't heard these complaints before they haven't been directed to my office but as a parent, I've heard them from my own children," she said.

Adjustment period? Come on. If you ban soda from kids at school? Why dont you ban tobacco and coffee from adults from work or anywhere outside their home. Yes I said that. I am sure I speak for those kids, and those adults, who are afraid to stand up, and say: We want our soda back.
PS: Why is a middle school student doing this and not an adult?

For more information:
http://www.gov.mb.ca/healthyschools/foodinschools/documents/handbook.pdf
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2007/09/19/school-food.html