I get queasy just thinking about school lunches. I think I have gross-traumatic stress syndrome from having eaten one too many helpings of mystery-meat-aroni.

Or, it could come from the infamous chicken sandwich incident of 1978. My aunt was visiting us from Texas, and she decided to help my mom out by making us lunch: chicken salad. Only my aunt didn't know that my mom kept frosting in the mayonnaise jar. So, we had chicken and frosting sandwiches.

They tasted terrible and wonderful at the same time. But mostly terrible. The really disturbing thing is that my aunt knew the mayonnaise didn't look right but she used it anyway.

What is it that makes people think anything goes when it comes to what kids eat for lunch? From what I've seen lately, things haven't improved.

I spent a couple of years volunteering as a lunch buddy to a student in a nearby school, joining him for a meal a week. According to what I observed, a bowl of nachos -- exactly the same nutrition-free snack you can get at a stadium -- apparently now counts as a lunch entrée. I'm also fairly certain the breaded-and-fried potato plugs they served us came from the very same Idaho-size bag my elementary school was using during the Carter administration. Over the years, they've shriveled like mummies.

No, time hasn't been kind to the fried tater snacks. And in time, the fried tater snacks won't be kind to the kids who eat them.

Despite the wonders of technology that have brought us sugar-free sugar and a fat imposter, Americans have still managed to pack on more pudge than is healthy.

School lunches aren't all to blame. In fact, there are more low-fat options than ever for kids. The Department of Agriculture reports that 80 percent of America's schools offer low-fat lunches. Ten years ago, just one school in three did.

Still, about 13 percent of kids are obese -- which means they're overweight enough that they're damaging their health. This is twice as many seriously overweight kids as were running around (or sitting on the couch eating chips) 20 years ago.

In case anyone is in doubt, this is proof that you can lead a kid to cottage cheese, but you can't make him eat it. If low-fat foods are unappetizing, they will not keep kids from eating hamburgers, nachos, cookies and candy.

Over time, being overweight not only can damage self-esteem, it can damage health. Staying at an appropriate weight decreases the risk of certain cancers and heart disease. Being too heavy can cause diabetes, which has serious side-effects.

So, really, this issue comes down to two important questions:

• What kinds of foods do kids (and grownups) need?
• How can we make them taste great?