COLUMBIA --- Fatty snacks and sugary drinks may be tasty, but in South Carolina schools, the treats are being targeted by legislation aimed at preventing childhood obesity.
The bill, H. 3297, introduced by a Barnwell County Democrat, received key House approval Thursday and could be headed to the Senate next week.
Under the legislation, only food and beverage offerings that meet specific sugar, fat and calorie limits may be sold to students.
The bill's sponsor, Rep. Bakari Sellers, D-Denmark, said his plan wouldn't cost anything to implement.
But he said some schools would lose the revenue from the sales of unhealthy snacks and drinks if such items were dropped.
In South Carolina the problem is immense: The Palmetto State had the fifth worst obesity rate last year, according to Trust for America's Health.
Obese children are almost guaranteed to grow into obese adults.
In 2007, about 14 percent of the state's high school students were obese and 70 percent did not get enough physical activity, according to the Youth Risk Behavior Survey.
Last year 65-69 percent of Aiken and Edgefield counties' population were obese.
And 17 counties, including Barnwell, Allendale and Hampton, had an obesity rate of 70 percent or greater, according to state data.
In Jasper County, 60-64 percent of the population was obese, and in Beaufort County, the portion was 50-54 percent.
Obese is defined as having a body-mass index of 25 or higher.
Under Mr. Sellers' bill, fund- raising activities and extracur- ricular events would not be affected.
Reach Sarita Chourey at (803) 727-4257 or sarita.chourey@morris.com.
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Maybe we should regulate how many times we need to use the toilet everyday. Do we need so many regulations? God Bless this great nation, I hope and pray we come back to our senses. What happened to the good old days?
If you cut out the soy also then the little boys would grow up to be men instead of being a little too sweet.
As a former smoker I demand the schools get their health problems in order so my insurance goes down. My insurance hasn't gone down yet but I am sure it will and it should go down tremendously once all these fat kids and adults get with the program. I also think now is the time to look at school buses and how we can eleminate them. The kids would be much healthier if they walked a few miles to school each day.