Parents of children in the Los Angeles School District have something new to talk to their children about when discussing healthy lifestyle choices: the absence of flavored milk in school lunches. On Tuesday, June 14, 2011, the Los Angeles Unified School District voted 5-2 to remove flavored milk options from its school menus.
Many school districts – including Washington D.C. - have passed similar acts in their efforts to make the meals they serve their students healthier while also combating childhood obesity. Los Angeles is the largest school district to ban sugar-laden, artificially flavored milks from their lunches. This district serves 650,000 meals a day at 1,000 different locations. In addition to removing milk from their menus, Los Angeles schools will be removing other unhealthy options such as corn dogs, chicken nuggets, and other fast food items. In their place, the district is adding more vegetarian options, such as spinach tortellini with butternut squash and California sushi rolls.
“Absolutely, by the fall the district will be a national leader,” said a senior advocate for the California Food Policy Advocates, Matthew Sharp.
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The premier of season two of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution was better than I had hoped. It had everyone in my house shocked and engaged. I couldn’t keep up with the discussion on twitter because #foodrevolution was a trending topic with hundreds of tweets every minute. If you missed it this week, I will catch you up. Hopefully you can join the conversation tweeting live with us next week.
This season Jamie is in Los Angeles, but he has been banned from the LAUSD school system. Even after going before the school board, not like a celebrity but like any other citizen in a three minute slot, Jamie was dismissed unceremoniously. At one point, Jamie stated that his welcome in Huntington, WV, reportedly the unhealthiest city in the U.S., was warm compared to the cold shoulder he was receiving in L.A. Because he was not allowed in the schools, he asked school children and their parents to bring him food items from the school. Jamie stated that it was the worst school menu he had seen anywhere (and twitter seemed to agree). It was revealed that to save money, food is only prepared in one kitchen for all the schools in L.A. – the meals were only warmed in house.
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I am excited to announce that we finally know when Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution season two will begin! After watching this preview for season two it seems that the delay may have been a result of the obstacles Jamie faced in bringing his revolution to Los Angeles, California.
When Jamie was told that his permits to work in the L.A. schools had been revoked, he declared war. I anticipate a lot of interesting public demonstrations in season two. I am hopeful that we will see that such grassroots campaigns are even more powerful than sharing his message with families with the assistance of the schools. I am excited that Jamie has continued his revolution despite setbacks and obstacles.
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Watching every episode of Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution certainly sparked something in me to feed my children healthier meals. I have wished to have Oliver work in the school kitchens in my city, to help others see that the food choices they make for students have room for improvement. If that chance was offered to my city, I’d really hope that those in charge would accept the offer.
Not so for the Los Angeles Unified School District. They were offered a spot on the second season of The Food Revolution and turned it down.
Jamie Oliver’s first season of Food Revolution took on the city of Huntington, West Virginia, a city with the reputation for being “America’s Fattest City“. Oliver was met with criticism and outright hostility, although he was ultimately welcomed by those who were his biggest enemies. Now, in his second season, he has decided to take on the city of Los Angeles – the second largest city in America, and not just in population. It’s a great idea, except that the Unified School District wants no part of his plan.
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True Blood heartthrob Ryan Kwanten may have a hot bod, but we’re not sure we’d recommend all of his workout habits. He recently bragged to Men’s Health that he can still get in a good workout while intoxicated. “I’ve been known to turn up drunk at triathlons and do very well,” said the Australian actor in his interview for the November cover story. We don’t really need to tell you why that’s not a good idea, right?
The rest of Kwanten’s workout we can endorse. Once a professional triathlete, he says he works out for his own physical and mental wellness, not just to look good for a role.
“I’m very rarely in the gym. My workouts are predominately outside, in nature.” He prefers to run on mountain trails outside L.A. or bike and swim on the beach. Kwanten also recommends engaging in a variety of physical actives. “There’s a lot to be said for muscle confusion,” he says. “The moment you have monotony, your muscles can fall asleep. Variety makes you much more balanced.”
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