LOS ANGELES — Chocolate
milk has long been seen as the spoonful of sugar that makes the
medicine go down, but the nation's childhood obesity epidemic has a
growing number of people wondering whether that's wise.
With schools under increasing pressure to offer healthier food, the
staple on children's cafeteria trays has come under attack over the very
ingredient that made it so popular — sugar.
Some school districts have gone as far as prohibiting flavored milk,
and Florida considered a statewide ban in schools. Other districts have
sought a middle ground by replacing flavored milks containing
high-fructose corn syrup with versions containing sugar, which some see
as a more natural sweetener.
Los Angeles Unified, the nation's second-largest school district, is
the latest district to tackle the issue. Superintendent John Deasy
recently announced he would push this summer to remove chocolate and
strawberry milk from school menus.
But nutritionists — and parents — are split over whether bans make
sense, especially when about 70 percent of milk consumed in schools is
flavored, mostly chocolate, according to the industry-backed Milk
Processors Education Program.
Many, including the School Nutrition Association, American Academy of
Pediatrics, American Dietetic Association, American Heart Association,
and National Medical Association, argue that the nutritional value of
flavored low-fat or skim milk outweighs the harm of added sugar. Milk
contains nine essential nutrients including calcium, vitamin D and
protein.
TODAY Moms: Is chocolate milk in schools a yummy treat or evil sweet?
A joint statement from those groups points to studies that show kids
who drink fat-free, flavored milk meet more of their nutrient needs and
are not heavier than non-milk drinkers.
"Chocolate milk has been unfairly pegged as one of the causes of
obesity," said Julie Buric, vice president of marketing for the Milk
Processors Education Program.
Others note the nation's child obesity epidemic and say flavored milk simply needs to go.
'Soda in drag'
Eight ounces of white milk served in Los Angeles public
schools contains 14 grams of natural sugar or lactose; fat-free
chocolate milk has an extra six grams of sugar for a total of 20 grams,
while fat-free strawberry milk has a total of 27 grams — the same as
eight ounces of Coca-Cola.
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"Chocolate milk is soda in drag," said Ann Cooper, director of
nutrition services for the Boulder Valley School District in Louisville,
Colo., which has banned flavored milk. "It works as a treat in homes,
but it doesn't belong in schools."
Flavored milk is also a target of British TV chef Jamie Oliver, who has made revamping school food a signature cause.
For a segment to be aired on his "Food Revolution" TV show, he
recently filled a school bus with white sand to represent the amount of
sugar Los Angeles Unified school children consume weekly in flavored
milk.
"If you have flavored milk, that's candy," he told The Associated Press.
Oliver cheered Deasy's proposal to remove flavored milk from schools
during a recent joint appearance on the "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" show.
If the school board adopts the ban, Los Angeles Unified would join districts including Washington and Berkeley, Calif.
But efforts by some other districts turned sour after children drank
less milk. Milk consumption drops by 35 percent when flavored milks are
removed, according to the Milk Processors Education Program.
Cabell County, W.Va., schools brought chocolate milk back at the
recommendation of state officials, and Fairfax County, Va., did the same
after its dairy provider came up with a version sweetened with beet
sugar rather than high-fructose corn syrup.
The Florida Board of Education also backed away from its proposed ban
on chocolate milk after the state agricultural commissioner urged the
board to look at all sugary food and beverages served in schools.
The Los Angeles district has worked with its dairy supplier on
flavored versions using the sweetener Truvia and chicory, district
spokesman Robert Alaniz said.
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Cooper and others argued children will drink plain milk if that's what's offered.
"We've taught them to drink chocolate milk, so we can unteach them that," Cooper said. "Our kids line up for milk."
Boulder Valley hasn't been barraged with complaints since removing
chocolate milk two years ago, but it hasn't tracked whether milk
consumption has dropped, she said.
Parents line up on both sides of the issue.
Deborah Bellholt, a South Los Angeles mother, said none of her six
children ranging from pre-school to high school age will drink plain
milk. "By allowing kids flavored milk, they still get the calcium they
need," she said. "If not, they'd bypass it."
But Mimi Bonetti, a suburban Los Angeles mother with two elementary
school-age children who drink plain milk, said she gets angry that
chocolate milk is portrayed as nutritious. Children can get calcium and
other nutrients from other foods, she said.
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"If you offer them the choice of chocolate or plain, of course
they're going to choose chocolate," Bonetti said. "When you're telling
kids that drinking chocolate milk is a healthy choice, it's sending the
wrong message."
Ask kids, and most vote for chocolate. Suburban Los Angeles
seventh-grader Nacole Johnson said plain milk tastes yucky. If there
were no chocolate milk, "I wouldn't drink it," she said.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This
material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
