With veto pen in hand, Colorado Governor Bill Owens nixed a bill that would have dictated to the state’s schools exactly what their vending machines could and could not stock. In his veto letter, Owens condemned “legislation that micromanages school districts and their policies.“
Owens understands that it is only personal responsibility which can fight this health threat while allowing us to eat the foods we like at the same time. In an interview reported by the Denver Post, he points out: “I have oatmeal every day. I have in my refrigerator, I have tomato juice low-sodium, I have protein drinks, bananas … I eat well so that I can eat McDonald’s.“
The science says that Owens is right. The problem with attacking snacking is that snacks aren’t the problem:
“In conclusion, our data did not offer support for the hypothesis that snacking promotes weight gain.“
— Harvard researchers writing in the International Journal of Obesity, 2004“In 91% of the countries examined, the frequency of sweets intake was lower in overweight than normal weight youth.“
— Report in Obesity Reviews, 2005“Contrary to our expectations, our findings did not indicate any association between snacking patterns and BMI [Body Mass Index], nor did we find great differences in dietary intake patterns based on snacking habits.“
— Study in the Journal of Human Nutrition and Dietetics, 2003
And in case there’s any doubt that Owens doesn’t understand the value of physical activity, visit this page on his website. [Warning: This page features old guys in ties attempting to do something athletic.]
