# What would you do if the State substituted your kid's lunch?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-the-state-substituted-your-kids-lunch/613041>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [February 16, 2012, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-the-state-substituted-your-kids-lunch/613041 "2012-02-16T17:11:41Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 5

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**Author:** ![Acsenray](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/acsenray/32/4519_2.png) [@Acsenray](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Acsenray)\
**Post date:** [February 28, 2012, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-the-state-substituted-your-kids-lunch/613041/81 "2012-02-28T15:39:01Z")

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> [@perfectparanoia](#):
>
> I don’t look at fat so much I look at the lack of anything nutritional at all in it. All refined flour and sugar.

Calories from carbohydrates are just like any other calories. I’m not saying a kid should live on the stuff, and he should be getting adequate fiber, vitamins, minerals, protein, etc., as part of his daily diet, but kids should be using up a lot of raw calories throughout the day and a pack of Handi-Snacks is just calories. I still don’t see how this constitutes a terrible snack.

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**Author:** ![perfectparanoia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a5b964/32.png) [@perfectparanoia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/perfectparanoia)\
**Post date:** [February 28, 2012, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-would-you-do-if-the-state-substituted-your-kids-lunch/613041/82 "2012-02-28T16:25:15Z")

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> [@Acsenray](#):
>
> Calories from carbohydrates are just like any other calories. I’m not saying a kid should live on the stuff, and he should be getting adequate fiber, vitamins, minerals, protein, etc., as part of his daily diet, but kids should be using up a lot of raw calories throughout the day and a pack of Handi-Snacks is just calories. I still don’t see how this constitutes a terrible snack.

A moderately active elementary child only needs between 1400 and 1600 calories a day. Wasting 100 of them on nutritionally deficient food won’t get them their vitamins and minerals.

The part that bugs me is that the teachers and principal are convinced that these items are healthy. Not by my definition. By my definition, this is junk food. About the same as chips, really.

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