According to the U.S. Census Bureau, there are roughly 76 million students in the country. These students range from nursery school to college. Many attend campuses that lack healthy food options that are readily available. This issue has come to theforefront through the “Jamie Oliver’s Food Revolution” show, and with the government stepping in to make legislative changes. But the most effective way to inspire change in the foods being offered begins locally.

“When schools do not provide healthy food options, students and parents really need to get involved,” explains Jolly Backer, the chief executive officer of Fresh Healthy Vending (www.freshvending.com), a company specializing in vending machines that are stocked with all-healthy options. “Many people are making effective changes on campuses across the country. The power in making this happen lies with those who attend the school or, in the case of younger children, with their parents.”

For those who would like to see their school campus provide healthier food options, whether in a primary school or on a college campus, there are several things they can do. Here are five tips for getting healthy foods on campus:

1.    Get involved. When schools are aware that the students and parents want healthy food options to be available, they will be more likely to instigate change to bring it about. Rather than just wishing for healthier options, people need to be proactive.

2.    Involve others. There are likely many other students and parents who feel the same way. Find others who want the same thing, and form a group or task force. The more people involved in asking for change, the better.

3.    Get creative. There will always be some people who support the cause but don’t want to be active in the group. Get them to sign a petition for healthier food options, write a letter to the campus newspaper or school board, etc.

4.    Employ departments. Each school or college campus has particular departments that may join the effort to bring about healthy food options. Try to work with them to make it happen. Start with such groups as the student body government and health department.

5.    Be consistent. Although fighting for change can become frustrating if results don’t happen soon enough, it is important to remain polite and professional. Also, don’t easily give up. Sometimes it takes a while for changes to work their way through the proper channels.

“Healthy food options, even for those on the run, should be readily available,” added Backer. “So it is really just a matter of people letting their schools and colleges know that it is indeed wanted.”

Some people drink their breakfast and lunch and save their taste buds for a wonderful supper. Others like a little pick me up during the day at work and school and here is where fresh healthy vending comes in. Naked drinks in vending machines add a little fruity touch to the day for that extra shove we all need during the day. Combining fruits and vegetables for a naturally sweet smoothie, people can get many of the required fruits and vegetables from fresh vending. For the health conscious, this can be economic as well as healthy.

Fruit juices are mostly packed with sugar, making the fresh fruit the better bet for the health conscious. Fresh healthy vending using vegetable juices are often tart to the taste and put a lot of people off drinking them. Combine the two, however, and you have a naturally sweetened drink that fills people up and contains a pound of fruit. The ingredients in fresh vending of Naked Green Machine, for instance, are listed as spirulina, chlorella, broccoli, green tea extract, spinach, barley grass, echinacea purpurea extract, wheat grass, odorless garlic and natural flavorings. Sounds tart, yes? Now add some apple juice, mango puree, pineapple juice, banana puree and kiwifruit puree and the tartness is diffused.

Now, this is a lot of sugar, even if it’s natural sugar. The energy spikes after too much sugar and crashes. It is recommended that consumption of the smoothie from fresh healthy vending be limited to a small portion twice a day to avoid overloading the system. This should appeal to the economical among us who love to assemble all that fruit and vegetables in the blender to make their own smoothies. That would cost a mint, you should pardon the expression. Although Fresh vending of Naked Green Machine drinks don’t cost much, making it stretch makes sense to the body and the wallet. Drinking one’s breakfast or lunch can be a filling exercise and that’s the point. Naked Green Machine is a heavy hitter with a light taste, perfect for replacing carbs after a workout or supplementing the diet of those who don’t get all the servings of fruits and vegetables needed for maintaining a healthy lifestyle.

For those living in Arizona, more than one quarter of adults are obese, and the state ranks 15th for childhood obesity and 29th for adult obesity. Pima County residents were happy to hear that they were the only county in Arizona who received funds from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to help curb and prevent obesity. Receiving $15.7 million, the money will go to Pima County teams who work with schools, workplaces, faith-based groups, and neighborhoods to educate on nutritional eating habits and reduce obesity.

So what are some of the ideas that will help make this program a success? Implementing fresh vending machines and exercise programs into the lives of kids and adults is one of the effective ways that Pima County teams are working together and putting the stimulus money to good use. While fresh healthy vending choices should indeed be offered at all public venues and places, it’s schools and workplaces that the teams are targeting first. And, it’s not that snacks and sugary drinks are being replaced with less fattening and less sugary alternatives. These fresh healthy vending machines are getting a total makeover.

While eating healthy starts at home, kids can’t make the right choices if they’re not available at schools. The same goes for adults who eat healthy at home, yet only have choices for sodas, chips, and candy from local vending machines. Fortunately, a new senate bill passed this summer grants $3.4 billion to schools in order to improve school menus and incorporate fresh vending selections on school grounds. Michelle Obama has also given attention to ending childhood obesity, starting with getting schools to offer healthier choices.

Kids and adults can find a selection of kid-friendly, healthy snacks in these new fresh vending machines, including 100% fruit juices, soy milk, soy yogurts, and all-natural granola bars. Yet it’s not just the fresh vending machines that Pima County teams are working toward. Fitness programs are also being integrated into the workplace and will consist of wellness programs, work-site training sessions, stretch bands, and healthy cookbooks to send home with employees.

In addition to fresh healthy vending machines and fitness programs, Pima County teams also plan to offer obesity prevention kits to local churches, hospitals, and doctors. Also in the works is train-the-trainer sessions, where trainers can get a hands-on approach to health coaching. With the combination of fresh vending choices, fitness seminars, and more training, Pima County is off to a good start in reducing obesity.

When asked why the nation’s obesity problem is so high, many people are quick to blame society. With fast food joints and vending machines lurking on every corner, people agree that it can be nearly impossible to make the right choices. While it’s true that fast food restaurants offer little in terms of nutrition, and that vending machines are stocked with a variety of unhealthy snack options, blaming society for obesity and Type 2 Diabetes certainly isn’t the right approach.

Fast food restaurants are trying to offer better menu selections, unfortunately they often remain untouched. Yet with the growing awareness of diabetes and obesity, especially in young children, more people are taking initiative to make better choices. However, it’s still difficult to pass up that juicy burger and fries when eating out, and it can be even more difficult to choose a whole grain bran muffin as opposed to a bag of sugary cookies from the vending machine.

In an effort to reshape the way people eat when away from their homes, Canada has adopted fresh vending machines across schools, college campuses, sports venues and arenas, medical facilities, health clubs, and amusement parks. While we may not think much about grabbing a bag of chips or downing a soda from a vending machine, these choices can become damaging in the long-term.

What Canadian nutritionists fear however, is that fresh healthy vending machines won’t meet the expectations intended. For example, many schools have swapped out sugary sodas for juices and sports drinks, but these selections can have just as much sugar, if not more, than soda. While fruit juices may look like a healthier option, they’re really not. So what’s the solution?

The best approach is to work with companies who offer fresh healthy vending machines, instead of just replacing certain foods. These fresh vending companies provide the best options for kids and adults who need a healthy, yet enjoyable snack. Soy crisps, soy puddings, whole grain muffins, 100% fruit juices, and all-natural granola bars are just some of the finds that are available from fresh vending machines. Plus, these fresh healthy vending machines offer more organic choices, getting kids and adults used to choosing these wholesome alternatives that are low in pesticides and chemicals, and high in nutrition and good-for-you calories.

Going off to a college is certainly a big milestone, but many freshmen don’t plan on gaining the infamous Freshman Fifteen. In fact, many students make a solid promise to themselves that they will eat healthy, well-balanced meals, refrain from empty calories and fried foods, and get plenty of exercise. Yet those promises usually go out the window within the first few weeks of school, as not only are the unhealthy food choices most satisfying, but the pressure of school, work, and late night study sessions create the perfect atmosphere for indulging in unhealthy foods.

Why is it that a midnight snack consists of cold pizza, tacos, or chips, instead of a healthy alternative, such as a banana or plate of cold cut veggies? One of the reasons is that college food is simply designed to be unhealthy, and the choices offered by vending machines, local diners, and college cafeterias are inexpensive pleasers such as sodas, chips, pizza, and fries. Not to mention, the dessert bars are hard to pass up, especially when ice cream, brownies, and cookies can be eaten with every meal. After all, how many kids actually have this set-up at home?

Across the Midwest however, college campuses are trying to make changes to the foods offered around campus. Offering healthier meals and menu choices is only half the battle; fresh healthy vending machines are also being added on school grounds, swapping them for traditional vending machines that stock up on chips, soda, and cookies. While it’s true that college kids do enjoy indulging in certain foods, most have asked for healthy vending options to be integrated into fresh healthy vending machines across campus and in the dorms.

Since the atmosphere of a college campus is a hurried one, Midwest schools believe that incorporating fresh healthy vending machines throughout campus is the perfect solution. There’s little time to plan for healthy snacks and the choices to eat right need to be there. Even more reassuring is that college kids really do want to eat better and are often looking for fresh and organic fresh vending machines that will offer satisfying, yet wholesome choices.

The Midwest has the right idea and hopefully other colleges and universities across the nation will follow in suit. As long as kids have fresh vending options to choose from, they no longer have to turn to the greasy, empty calorie foods they once relied on for fuel.

Although recent reports have shown that cases of diabetes are expected to double, or perhaps triple, over the next 40 years, these findings don’t come out of the blue. Back in 1996, a study published by Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center found an increase in Type 2 Diabetes amongst teens and suggested that a rise in obesity was the leading cause. The study urged that calories be cut and physical activity be raised for America’s children, as the consequences were only going to prove to be more disastrous during adulthood.

Nearly 15 years later, reports show that 1 in 10 Americans have diabetes, and we have no one to blame but ourselves. Of course, it’s easiest to do the wrong thing and fall into the trap of eating fast foods and empty calories, especially with there being few choices for healthy vending foods. Yet the worst part is that Type 2 Diabetes is affecting the youngest members of our society, ones that rely on parents and caregivers to make the right choices for them. Simply saying that our society is what makes us unhealthy doesn’t do any justice to America’s children.

As a reaction to these startling findings, the system is finding ways to improve. Offering fresh healthy vending options in schools, as well as nutritionally balanced lunches, is a major step forward. A senate bill passed this summer budgeted $3.4 billion to making these fresh vending choices a reality, and for good reason.

Type 2 Diabetes is a metabolic disorder that prevents the body from using insulin to convert glucose into energy. While it’s a name we hear often, Type 2 Diabetes has dire consequences. It’s the seventh leading cause of death in the U.S., it is a major contributing factor to heart disease, stroke, kidney failure, blindness, and other ailments, and it has led to over 70,000 amputations in one year alone.

The good news is that the diabetes can be reversed with proper eating, exercise, and weight loss. After all, who would ever want a lifetime of health ailments to take over the lives of our children? Eating healthy starts at home, but there’s no way for children to make the right choices when the fresh healthy vending options simply aren’t there.

The new senate bill plans to bring fresh fruit juices, whole grains, dried fruits, and organic selections to fresh vending machines. Not only will these fresh healthy vending machines be available for children at schools, but they will also replace traditional vending machines found at sports venues, amusement parks, and movie theaters.

Americans know that childhood obesity is on the rise and continues to be a growing problem in the country, with today’s children believed to be the first generation that will live shorter life spans than their parents. Yet even with this vital information at-hand, kids are still being fed an amazing amount of empty calories each day, so much that nearly 40% of their daily calories come from such empty sources as chips, soda, pizza, whole milk, cake, and sugary fruit drinks.

Do these foods sound familiar? They’re often the most common foods found in schools across the nation and they’re loaded into cafeteria vending machines that kids have no choice but to eat from. Surprisingly, kids are getting tired of this junk food and are looking for fresh healthy vending options.

Fortunately, we’re making strides, as Michelle Obama has paid great attention to the issue of childhood obesity, shedding light on offering fresh vending options on college campuses and school grounds. We’ve seen improvements in the system as well, as this summer the senate passed a $4.5 billion bill to get school lunches healthier and stock vending machines with fresh healthy vending options.

Yet, many agree that just offering fresh vending choices isn’t going to cut it. After all, many college students are unaware of what the nutritional content of foods are and how many servings of each food group they should be eating a day.

While experts agree that manufacturing companies have spent an overwhelming amount of time and money marketing sugary, unhealthy foods to kids, there’s more to the story. Nutrition education needs to start from conception and move throughout the education system so that by the time kids are in school, they know what healthy eating really is.

So what are some of the fresh vending options that college kids are looking for? Organic, wholesome foods that steer clear of empty calories and provide kids with the fuel they need to get through their day. Assorted nuts, whole grain muffins, 100% fruit juices, and dried fruits are all popular suggestions.

It’s refreshing to see that even college kids are getting tired of the junk food offered through vending machines and are looking for some fresh vending selections around their dorms and college campuses.