The Boston Herald reports that the state of Massachusetts is banning bakes sales, as well as yummy treats served at holiday parties and classroom birthday celebrations. The ban will go into effect on August 1, and will only apply during school hours, at least for a while. They want to put the ban in place 24/7, which will put a damper on the ability of parent-teacher groups and booster clubs to raise funds for extracurricular activities. Ironically, many of those activities are sporting events that help to keep children in good physical condition.

Of course, people are unhappy about the ban on baked goods, but the state basically is telling them it’s their own fault for letting their kids get fat. [Emphasis added]

No, insists Dr. Lauren Smith, DPH’s medical director.

“We’re not trying to get into anyone’s lunch box,” Smith told the Herald. “We know that schools need those clubs and resources. We want them to be sure and have them, but to do them a different way. We have some incredibly innovative, talented folks in schools who are already doing some impressive things, who serve as incontrovertible evidence that, yes, you can do this, and be successful at it.”

State Sen. Susan Fargo (D-Lincoln), chairwoman of the Joint Committee on Public Health, said the problem of overweight children has reached “crisis” proportions.

“If we didn’t have so many kids that were obese, we could have let things go,” Fargo said.

“But,” she added, “this is a major public health problem and these kids deserve a chance at a good, long healthy life.”

As if a treat eaten in school during the day is going to make a child obese. The diets of children are shaped at home, so what’s next, the food police knocking down doors and raiding cupboards?