By Senator Blanche Lincoln
It might seem odd to find hunger and obesity mentioned together. But they are two of the greatest threats to the health of Arkansas's children -- and the future of our nation.
And Congress is running out of time to do something about them. The funding authorization for critical programs to fight these threats expires in less than two months, on Sept. 30.
With precious few days left on the legislative calendar, we cannot miss this opportunity.
One in four children in Arkansas lives in hunger. One out of five Arkansas children struggles with obesity.
Children who are hungry or obese face learning challenges and lifelong health problems, according to studies. Their poor health adds significant costs to our health care system and to our nation's future economic security.
Fortunately, hunger is a disease for which we have the cure. More healthful meals are part of the solution to reversing the growing epidemic of childhood obesity.
As chairman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry, I wrote the Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, which takes a tremendous step toward addressing the childhood hunger and obesity crisis and puts us on a path to significantly improving the health of the next generation of Americans.
But with the Sept. 30 deadline looming, time is running out to pass this critical bill. If we fail to act, our children will be forced to live with the status quo. This is unacceptable.
The act unanimously passed my committee earlier this year. It is completely paid for -- meaning the bill's critical investments will not add 1 cent to the national debt. This is an investment in the next generation that ensures our children are healthy and does so without saddling them with a financial burden they cannot afford.
This common-sense solution would provide additional resources to help our schools serve healthier meals.
For the first time since 1973, Congress would increase the reimbursement rate for schools, enabling them to serve healthier lunches. Arkansas school food professionals tell me that these funds are desperately needed.
Nationwide, more than 30 million children participate in the National School Lunch Program each day, including more than 350,000 in Arkansas. More than 10 million children eat in the breakfast program, 18,000 of them in Arkansas.
We have a real opportunity to improve access and food quality in these and other life-sustaining programs.
If we don't pass this bill, 29 million nutritious after-school meals won't be served to hungry children, and as many as 120,000 eligible low-income children won't receive quality meals.
Make no mistake, if we fail to pass this, there will be real-world consequences. The statistics I cite aren't just numbers -- they represent real children. Real children who come from hardworking families struggling to make ends meet. Real children who struggle with obesity and will continue to deal with long-term health consequences throughout their life.
The time to act is now.