Improving Nutrition Through Food Fortification: Article Analysis

Barry M Popkin, Linda S Adair, Shu Wen Ng; Global nutrition transition and the pandemic of obesity in developing countries. Nutr Rev 2014; 70 (1): 3-21. doi: 10.1111/j.1753-4887.2011.00456.x

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

It is estimated that two billion people worldwide suffer from malnutrition. Out of those people, “52 million children under 5 years of age are wasted, 17 million are severely wasted and 155 million are stunted” (Malnutrition). 3 million of those children are from the Democratic Republic of Congo. EE: There are several reasons for the concentration of malnutrition in the DRC. E: First of all, The Democratic Republic of Congo has been in the middle of a civil war for nearly 10 years. So the question is, how does this affect the dietary needs of citizens? Displaced settlements have trouble receiving healthcare and they also face “alarming shortages of food, water, and shelter”. Overall, there have been 2.7 million displaced people and those rates are still going up. In addition, there are 120,000 refugees fleeing to these provinces, and in 5 of the eastern provinces alone, there are 6.7 million hungry people. (10 Facts). Settlements, such as Tanganyika, have seen nearly half a million citizens displaced within a year (Democratic Republic of Congo). These provinces will soon see these numbers climb if something is not done to stop this growing issue.

While most people know that eating well is important to staying healthy and for prolonging life, poverty makes it difficult to access good nutritious food. Easy access to abundant food is not

Children who are malnourish and vitamin A deficient are two times more likely to die compare to those receiving a vitamin A supplement. This increase in mortality rate is due to the vulnerability state of the child that caused by lack of nutrition. Moreover, the scarcity of the proper mineral and vitamins for pregnant mothers has cause more than 13 million underweight and premature births. Over the years Vitamins B, D, and C have proven to cure disease such as pellagra, rickets and scurvy and although this might seem easy fixes for the richer

Many support agricultural modernization, as a solution Africa’s, and many other impoverished nations hunger problems. This would include the industrialization of their agricultural industry, using modern, genetically enhanced seeds, and fertilizer. Yet, some of the same groups that are promoting the organic movement in the United States are advocating against the globalization of modern industrial agricultural practices (Paarlberg 179). Those who support modernization of such nations argue that the current process in inefficient, and inadequate. They believe that globalization of the highly capitalized, science-intensive, agricultural system that has been developed in the West, is the answer to the worlds hunger problems. They also warn that if the West abandons its current practices, it may fall victim to famine due to inadequate production (Paarlberg 179). However, supporters of organic production point to the fact that each year, approximately ten million tons of chemical fertilizer are poured onto our corn

The food security in Haiti is another issue that must be described to understand it better. Via USAID the number of people living in extreme poverty is about 2.5 million Haitians, most of their income being forced to be spent on subsistence farming (Agriculture and Food Security). The need for more accessible and better food is very evident with statistics like 53.4% of the population is undernourished, 21.9% of the under 5 population has experienced stunting because of the lack of nutritional intake. The problem is not getting any better in 2000 the population that was undernourished was 55.2% to today where it is at 53.4% (Global Hunger Index). The evidence for food security being a problem is overwhelming and where most of our attention will be spent. The solution for this issue is heavily involved but our organization will address this issue through many different avenues. The center called “Training for Food” will provide a service that rewards Haitians for coming to workshops about how to farm effectively with

Political turmoil in the United States is difficult to keep up with; however, it is important to pay attention to foreign affairs as well. In the country of Guatemala fifty percent of children under the age of five are severely malnourished, the fourth highest rate of malnutrition in the world. Malnutrition is defined as the lack of proper nutrition, cause by not having enough to eat, causing failure to thrive. Americans need to work together to stop the detrimental effects of malnutrition by focusing on the agricultural, government involvement, and education. By looking at the food created in Guatemala, we can see how these children get their energy.

Food is a necessary part of ever individual’s daily life. Without food, the body cannot function properly, resulting in poor health, exhaustion, and even death by starvation. Therefore, food insecurity continues to be an international global epidemic. The journal article by Harrigan suggests that the citizens of the Sub-Saharan African country of Malawia are in further poverty due to their lack of food and agricultural resources. The newspaper article from the Guardian tells the real life story of African citizens struggling to farm and find food due to the crop shortages that have spanned Africa for the past two years. This is a current global issue, and the journal and news article prove that there is much to be done in order to help restore

Plumpy Nut innovation created a revelation in nutritional affairs in one of the most underdeveloped countries in West Africa. From the video, I learned that malnutrition kills five million children a year, that equals one child every six seconds. With such loss of lives from a preventable “disease,” Plumpy Nut moves my heart of compassion to action. Having seen malnutrition first-hand in India, I truly can empathize with the Doctors Without Borders who experience the throws of malnutrition in the villages and communities in which they offer their services. From the video, the narrator concurred that currently only 3% of 20 million are receiving food like Plumpy Nut. Clearly, there is a lack of ready-to-eat nutrient dense enriched food to offer for millions who are suffering from malnutrition. According to the Chief Nutritionist, Dr. Milton in the video, we essentially have a ‘medicine’ to create a spectacular response to save millions of lives.

In the United States of America, people take food for granted. Anyone can go to the local grocery store or a farmers market and buy almost every type of food produced in the world. Globalization of food in first world countries has created “food scenes” in large metropolitan areas, and we can agree that this is spreading to smaller towns every day. Anyone can think of their favorite food and everyone would give a different response, whether it would be Mexican, Italian, or a local cuisine. This is possible through technological advances in farming techniques developed to produce food year round, due to strong states of government, with policies that empower this to be true. The lack of government involvement in Malawian farms is the predominant reason for a constant state of poverty.

The last but not the least, high food prices make the situation even worse. According to FAO ' s data, the population of undernourishment increased by 75 million, which is higher than it in 2003 to 2005. The scientists analyzed it is caused by the rising food price (FAO, 2008). Additionally, in some countries in African, South American and Asia where average income is very low, to achieve the food security is almost impossible. For instance, Afghanistan is one of the most food-insecure countries. In Afghanistan, with 80% of the population living in rural place, the agricultural industry is most significant to this country. However, the households in Afghanistan still need to spend over 60 percent of their budgets on food. In 2008, it can be easily found in the chart, the wheat flour price experienced a sharp increase from 15 per kg to 45 per kg, which greatly increased the burden of the inhabitants (D’Souza, 2011). When the flour price rises, the local people will certainly spend more percentage of their incomes on wheat flour rather than some high-quality vegetables and meat. Unreasonable diet structure can directly contribute to lacking nutrition and influence their healthy. As a result, a vicious circle is created and makes the

In this article, Barrett begins by defining many terms that are necessary to understand the meaning of food insecurity. The author then starts to investigate how many people globally suffer from not getting the nutrients they need. Many surveys were taken to provide a rough estimate of food-insecure families; the author informs readers of the surveys and the

Nutrition in the developed countries is not as much of a concern as it is for the developing countries such as Asia, Latin America and Africa. Looking back in time,

Food security is a worldwide concern because of the increases in the price of food, food shortage and other various reasons similar to these. These issues are addressed not only by governments but also by many non-governmental organizations. Clearly the issue of food security is a human right that is of the most importance.