The View Online

The Biggest Losers

Tuesday, September 08, 2009 By Justin Jarrell

Obesity in America can be defined as an epidemic, but the irony in that fact is that we are obsessed with being thin. Why, in a world obsessed with looks, are so many students overweight? Reasons can vary from heredity to the foods schools offer. Everyone has known at least one person who can eat whatever he or she desires, and not gain a pound. We all envy this person; we all hate this person. The explanation behind this is that everybody has a different metabolism; therefore we all digest food and burn fat at different rates. The foods that are offered here at Desert Vista are obviously not helping in the fight against obesity. “I dislike that most of the foods that the school provides are greasy and unhealthy, but we take what we can get,” said Senior Autumn Tullock. When asked, the cafeteria staff could not provide nutrition tables for their various entrees. Just looking at one of the chalupas that the school offers can give you visions of clogged arteries and cardiac arrest. Although they are undeniably delicious, is it worth it in the long run? Desert Vista doesn’t have a vast supply of healthy foods. “Ahwatukee has fast food restaurants on every corner, but the worst thing is that we can’t even get something healthy at our own school,” says Senior Alexis Runninger, “This is one of the main reasons that people are so fat.” The healthiest thing available to purchase in the school cafeteria would be one of the salads. Although, you can’t really say it’s a salad, seeing as how it’s one-fourth the size of an average one. We have been positively developing on this area in the past years. For over 25 years, Arizona has required one year of physical education to graduate. This effort, although positive, isn’t enough. This year the school soda machines were replaced with low-calorie Vitamin Water, PowerAde Zero, and all Diet Coca-Cola products. These efforts show that we realize that it is a problem, and we are moving in the right direction.