Hunger, Malnutrition, And Famine

Starvation is a global concern that affects millions of children every day. It is also the top cause of death for children under the age of four, it takes the lives of more than 3.5 million children every year. Furthermore, without a treatment,

Children in need of these nutrients can suffer from stunted growth never reaching potential height. Statistics have shown stunted growth children score significantly lower on intelligence tests than do normal children. Hunger interferes with physical, emotional and academic development. According to Freedom from Hunger, “more than 4 million children will die due to hunger related causes.” NASW(2016) shows an important connection food security and nutrition play in physical and mental health.

“What does malnutrition look like? Most of us think of bloated bellies or skin and bones, but the appearance of a hungry child might surprise you. Internationally hunger often stunts growth. Imagine a 9-year-old who appears to be only 5” (“Feed the Children.” Feed). Almost 1 billion kids worldwide live in poverty and 1 in 4 children around the world suffer from malnutrition that stunts growth (“Feed the Children.” Give). This is a very big problem not only in America but everywhere else, malnutrition is the cause of almost half of child deaths each year around the world (“Feed the Children.” Give). It is close to impossible for a malnourished child to recover from diarrhea or to fight off a small illness because their immune system is just simply too weak (“Feed the Children.”

Malnutrition causes nearly half of all deaths in children under five. (Food Aid Foundation.) Millions of children, gone, into thin air. As if they never existed. Millions of stories, millions of futures, all dead, uncared for. More than 795 million people do not have access to enough food to live a healthy lifestyle. (Food Aid Foundation.) Potential scientists, doctors, and musicians will never be able to achieve their goals because they can’t even obtain food. In Haiti, a small central-american country, one out of every three children lose the ability to grow because of malnourishment (Naq, Oishimaya Sen.). The severity of malnourishment in Haiti causes Haitian children to acquire many terminal diseases and blood deficiencies (Naq, Oishimaya

Despite the vast research on nutrition and health, malnutrition is still a major fatality in this present day. Policymakers, social scientist and medical experts have expressed alarm about the growing problem. While most agree that the issue deserves attention, consensus dissolves around how to respond and resolve the problem. Malnourishment continues to be a primary health liability in developing nations such as Asia, sub-Saharan Africa and Latin America. It is globally the most significant risk factor for illness and death, predominantly with hundreds of millions of pregnant women

Many children in this world suffer everyday in very different ways. Suffering ways could be the loss of shelter or having a very chronic disease. “We could start with hunger and malnutrition, which kill 3.1 million children under the age of five every year” (McGowan 8). Hunger is considered one of those ways and also causes other suffering barriers. Hunger is the craving and want of food. At times hunger causes a person to become very weak. Hunger has caused many child deaths throughout the centuries. Hunger is thought to only occur in underdeveloped countries, but that thought is wrong. There are a lot of children going through hunger in developed

He asserts that “our distance from a preventable evil [does not lessen] our obligation to mitigate or prevent that evil” (Singer 521).

There are so many of these children that are not getting the proper amount of nutrients and this problem goes far beyond just hunger. The effect of children who do not get the proper nutrition can change the outcome of natural maturity. The lack of nutrition can cause the kids to have growth, development, and learning issues. In the article, The Borgen Project, Kathryn Cassibry said ,over “44% of Rwandan children suffer from stunting. This means that they are unable to grow to their full potential because of a lack of adequate nutrition.” Too many of the kids are not getting what they need. Hunger is a major concern in Rwanda. Something must be done to prevent this from happening. If these kids can not get a good education because their hungry, how can they learn and be productive in their own environment? Therefore, we must help find a solution to this issue.

Malnutrition is highly prevalent among children in low and middle income countries. However, wide variations exist in the overall

These deficiencies are the result of malnourishment can have detrimental effects on one’s health. Children are the most likely to suffer from malnutrition and it causes “nearly half (45%) of deaths in children under five - 3.1 million children each year.” These nutritional and health problems that occur because of food inequality are only set to worsen because of the rising worry of food insecurity due to environmental problems.

Malnutrition and unclean water are major causes of death in developing countries. While people in developed countries have access to a glass of fresh water anytime of the day, it’s quite the contrary for people in developed countries whose only source of water is the river that’s miles away. This goes for food as well. Undernourished kids have a hard time developing and are less resistant to diseases (i). Insufficient nutrients contribute to rising child mortality (ii); mothers are unable to breastfeed their babies since they are undernourished themselves (ii). In some instances, girls are required to eat last after the males due to their culture. The consequences of malnutrition are many; the leading results are lower IQs, heart disease,

According to the World Health Organization, malnutrition is shortages, excesses or disproportions in a person’s intake of nutrients. It could also be referred to as when the body does not have adequate nutrients in food due to health problems such as diarrhea. This is a big issue developing nations where lack of clean water and poor sanitation are common. Millions of children are affected by poverty all over the world, and malnutrition has become a serious problem for many communities (Finn, 2014). In developing nations, many children do not have access to the well-balanced, nutritious food with the nutrients they need to develop properly. As a result, malnutrition can lead to health problems and even death. Food insecurity has currently become the main issue with malnutrition which is an indicator of either overnutrition or undernutrition especially among the vulnerable group of people (Ihab, A., Rohana, A., & Manan, W, 2015).

Maternal and childhood malnutrition in low and middle-income countries presents a global public health challenge and threatens attainment of the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs)i. Encompassing both under nutrition and obesity as well as vitamin and mineral deficiency, malnutrition can be caused by multiple factorsii. These factors are closely linked to general standards of living, education, environment and the ability of a population to meet its basic needsiii. Malnutrition has profound effects on health throughout life and holds important consequences for survival, incidence of disease, growth and development and the economic productivity of communities. These outcomes can be seen across generationsiv.

On the other hand, bacterial and parasitic disease in developing countries heavily contribute to malnutrition. Malnutrition “increases one’s susceptibility to infections,” (Müller and Krawinkel 279) and it is a major building block of illness and death. Young children and women are greatly at risk for this health issue and it is more prevalent in poorer families. At least “thirty-one percent of children under the age of five are underweight, and thirty-eight percent have stunted growth” (Müller and Krawinkel 278). In cases of malnutrition, there is a severe “fatty degeneration” of major organs like the heart and liver; if not treated properly, it can soon lead to cardiac failure. The World Health Organization has a ten-step strategy to help those with severe health issues and are currently revising their strategies to focus more on individuals who are affected with both malnutrition and HIV/AIDS. These strategies focus on different “dietary options” (Müller and Krawinkel 282) and more availability for nutrients that they are lacking. It is important for actions to be taken to provide safer drinking water, a more focused

My first supporting argument is that achieving global health equity is possible by providing people with resources that are sustainable, and tools that help people to succeed. One of the most crucial resources individuals have is sustainable nutrition. Nutrition plays an enormous role in global health, and many countries are affected my malnutrition. In the article, Malnutrition and Health in Developing Countries, the authors discuss the risks of worldwide malnutrition. Muller and Krawinkel describe the causes and signs of protein-energy malnutrition and micronutrient deficiency. Malnutrition is a key factor and direct cause of over 300,000 deaths each year. Not only is malnutrition killing tremendous numbers of people each year, but also severely affecting the overall health of many societies.