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http://www.omniture.com --> Oregon Road Conditions & Cams Advertisement Email Story to a Friend May 5, 2006 Ashland High School sophomore Savannah Julian selects a flavored water for her lunchtime beverage Thursday. Ashland already has banned nondiet soda drinks on campus. (Mail Tribune / Roy Musitelli) Soda pop wars By JOHN DARLING for the Mail Tribune On the Ashland High School quad, you won't find many teens slurping soda pop, at least not cans bought on campus — but as any teen will tell you, that's not going to stop them from loading up on the sugary and caffeinated drinks they love so much. "Kids equal caffeine," observed AHS senior Ashley Roda. "I'm seeing more kids with to-go coffee drinks now," said AHS Assistant Principal Ken Kigel. In an effort to counter teen obesity, hyperactivity, high blood sugar and poor diet, AHS and some other schools in the valley have beaten beverage makers to the punch and banned pop already, replacing it with fruit drinks, bottled tea, milk and bottled water but leaving diet soda in place. All the replacement drinks in bottles are supplied by PepsiCo Inc., says AHS kitchen manager Don Galli of Sodexho food services. Major soft drink makers such as Pepsi and Coca Cola Co. Wednesday announced they will stop supplying soda pop to the nation's schools by the 2009-2010 school year. Soda accounts for almost half the beverages high schoolers drink. At Crater High School in Central Point, teens are still able to buy soda drinks on campus and are augmenting their caffeine intake with lots of before-school coffee drinks from espresso stands, "something we didn't see here three to five years ago," said Assistant Principal Jeff Weiss. Judy Detrick, office manager at Phoenix High School and member of the Wellness Policy Committee, says the committee is working on a policy to ban soda. "Everyone knows pop is not a healthy item, though I see the effects more from coffee drinks every day. It's all sweet stuff, like blended mochas. They do it to wake themselves up before class in the morning," said Detrick. Soda is still in machines at South Medford High School, but there is now a much wider selection of fruit juices, bottled water and teas, says Assistant Principal Harold Jones. "I notice kids taking different offerings than pop. I think consciousness is getting raised among the kids about health," he said. Like other school administrators, Jones sees more kids coming to school with espresso drinks and he hopes "they will be aware of what they're putting in their bodies and not overdo it." Medford schools Superintendent Phil Long said all schools are trying to limit student access to soda pop and other empty calories because "more and more kids are depending on nutrition to come from schools" instead of home, and "we need them physically fit." Schools walk a fine line as they try to get students to make better nutritional choices, notes Jones. "If you offer adolescents all wholesome food that's not interesting, they're not going to bother to get it here, so Sodexho is always trying to make things look more appetizing as we try to get beyond French fries and pizza." At Ashland High School, Principal Jeff Schlecht and the leadership class pushed the pop ban. "It's more about health issues than behavior from hyperactivity," said Glenna Stiles, dean of students. "It's hypocrisy to talk about health and then have them come in here for pop and candy." AHS art teacher Linda Thurow said, "It's been a positive thing because kids were filling up on sugar, caffeine and carbs and here we are, Oregon, second in the nation for obesity." The removal of soda pop has met with "astoundingly" little objection from students, said Kigel. "I thought we'd get all kinds of complaints, but we haven't." Junior Connor Wilkes echoed that, saying, "Sugary drinks are bad in a learning environment. I mean, in the long run, good health is important, more important than math anyway." Said senior Ashley Roda, "We're forced to drink other things, forced to be healthier and we'll adapt. But really, if they take out pop, they should put in an espresso bar." Taking in the big picture of student nutrition, senior Rebecca Saladoff observed, "Given the amount of pizza, ice cream and cheeseburgers you can get here, you can still eat very unhealthily. Banning pop isn't going to make any difference. I don't see any change. Anyway, I drink water." John Darling is a freelance writer living in Ashland. E-mail him at [email protected]. Advertisement s Mail Tribune Home | Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life | Opinion AP News | Archives | Site Map | Community | Classified Copyright © 1997-2006 Mail Tribune, Inc. All rights reserved. Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions | Website Feedback www.bingo.com Home Security Systems Trunks, Footlocker Custom Build Computers Discount Hotel Reservations online casinos news Ashley Furniture HomeStore Send Flowers Southern Oregon Loans California Casinos GMAT Prep Windermere Van Vleet Sports Equipment Online Casino Reviews Online Bingo Entertainment Guide Online Casino Fundraisers Sudoku Online Casinos Canada Online Pharmacy