Little Rock, Ark. – Arkansas – the first state to send home obesity report cards to warn parents of overweight kids’ health risks – may ditch the plan or weaken it with the help of the new governor.
Gov. Mike Beebe said the school weigh-ins and report cards had “a lot of negative, unintended consequences” and hurt some children’s self-esteem. He favors letting parents drop out of the program more easily and wants to test children less often.
His predecessor, Mike Huckabee, said reversing the state’s 3-year-old effort “would be a huge step backwards.” It’s worth noting that Beebe, a Democrat, has no weight problem.
Huckabee, a Republican, used to weigh 280 pounds, and before he began campaigning for president, he campaigned against the ills of obesity.
Since Arkansas adopted its school-based anti-obesity program, California, Florida and Pennsylvania have launched similar efforts.
