Can Camp Canteens Help Stop the Sugar Tide?

Op-ed by Shmarya Richler: Last year, during Visiting Day at camp, I saw something very concerning. I'm not talking about the hot dogs, burgers and french fries enough to feed an army... Full Story

Op-ed by Shmarya Richler: Last year, during Visiting Day at camp, I saw something very concerning. I'm not talking about the hot dogs, burgers and french fries enough to feed an army... Full Story

By Shmarya Richler

Recently, I was in a grocery store here in Montreal. Walking down the aisle, I saw a father shopping with his two children. Or should I say, shoveling?

The boys looked to be about 8 or 9. Let's say that they looked very well-nourished. And they were literally shoveling junk food into the shopping cart at a very fast rate. I saw their full cart at the checkout counter and noticed that most of its content could hardly be classified as "food."

It made me think of going to visit overnight camp this past summer. What I saw there probably replayed itself in many other camps and it was very concerning. I’m not talking about the hot dogs, hamburgers, french fries, knishes etc. There was enough of that consumed on visiting day to feed an army.

I’m talking about the "canteen scene." The canteen is one of the favorite spots for campers. They sell sweets, snacks, drinks, and favorite fast food that some children prefer over the camp-wide meal the kitchen staff works hard to prepare.

If while shopping with their dad, those 2 kids lacked self-control. Imagine what happens when they are on "their own" during the summer season at camp. And even a child with healthier eating habits, it's tough to resist peer pressure.

The childhood incidence of obesity and type 2 diabetes is on the rise. In most cases this is a direct result of eating the wrong foods and overeating. The easy availability of junk food, sugar sodas, and prepared foods is widespread.

Let's focus for a moment on sports drinks because I believe they are the worst culprit and because during Visiting Day in camp, it looked like they were outselling the regular sodas).

Sports drink manufacturers do a great marketing job. They convince you of two things. One, that somehow because athletes drink them, they are healthy, and two, that if you drink them, you are an athlete. Did you know that a 20-ounce bottle of a very popular sports drink contains 34 grams of sugar?

Sports drinks contain less sugar than a 12-ounce can of Coke (39 grams of sugar), but the daily recommended maximum sugar intake is 36 grams for men and 25 grams for women. For children, it is 25 grams. So, two sports drinks alone have more than twice the sugar than the daily recommendation for children. And that's not counting all the other sugar sources consumed during the day.

(There are sports drinks with zero sugar. They use sucralose instead, but that's for another discussion about chemicals.)

I did an informal survey in 6 running groups I belong to. I also polled some elite runners. 98% do not use sports drinks when running. Too much sugar is the main reason. It gives you an immediate high followed by a quick low, and it negatively impacts performance. The sports drink manufacturers tell you that their drink is for athletes, yet most athletes don't use them (in real life, that is. Not in the ads).

You may think that the children are very active in camp and need sports drinks to replace the carbs and electrolytes they are losing. They don't. They are getting all they need in their regular meals. I am a distance runner. I run marathons. Running a marathon, I expend more energy than what your children will expend in three days at camp. To keep hydrated, I take water and electrolytes capsules. I don't need the sugar drink. Your child does not need it either! And based on my research, most distance runners do the same as me.

So, what can we do to stem this seemingly unstoppable tide? Adults need to start leading a healthier lifestyle. This means eating better and exercising. This would show a living example to our children. And start reading labels. I suggested cutting down on sugar sodas and buying seltzer with a bit of fruit juice as an alternative.

But with camp season around the corner, it would be a good idea for camps to mandate that the canteen does not sell sugar sodas or sports drinks. There are plenty of flavored seltzers around that have no sugar in them. And why not sell good old-fashioned water? It may be difficult for the campers at the beginning, but I firmly believe they will be happy with the change after a week. Camps will be doing a huge favor to the campers and to their parents.

Have a healthy and happy summer!

If you have any questions or comments, email: [email protected]

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