FST 1: Lecture 2, World Food Problems:
What's the Impact of Hidden Hunger? Reading: Iron deficiency: -During childhood and adolescence...? -In adults...?
- most common micronutrient deficiency in the world -During childhood and adolescence, it impairs physical growth, mental development and learning capacity -In adults, it reduces the capacity to work, and severe anaemia increases the risk of women dying in childbirth
Food insecurity:
-Limited or uncertain availability of food or money to buy food. -According to the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), in 2014 there were 805 million undernourished people in the world.
What's the Impact of Hidden Hunger? Reading: Define 'hidden hunger':
-Malnutrition caused by a lack of vitamins and minerals in the diet -caused by not eating enough micronutrients
How to Increase Your IQ, Video:
-When a pregnant woman doesn't have iodine, her child suffers irreversible brain damage; has IQ that is 10-15 points lower than it should be -can lead to dwarfism, enlarged goiters, mental retardation -very cheap to add iodine to salt, but benefit is enormous -Micronutrient Initiative has been working with UN to fight iodine deficiency around the world; in Pakistan, targets 900 small salt processors, provides salt for poor; in the last two years about 75-80% of the salt has been iodized -campaign costs 2 cents per year per person; no other technology offers an opportunity to improve lives at such a low cost and in such a short time -Kristof: Obama should take seriously the tremendous bang for the buck that can come from aid dollars flowing to micronutrient programs like iodized salt
What's the Impact of Hidden Hunger? Reading: Zinc Deficiency:
-acting as a necessary component of more than 200 enzyme systems, normal growth and development, the maintenance of body tissues, sexual function, vision and the immune system -health effects of zinc deficiency include dermatitis, impaired growth, diarrhoea, mental disturbances and recurrent infections
Micronutrients‐WHO‐2006 Food fortification:
-addition of micronutrients to processed foods. -can lead to a rapid improvements in the micronutrient status; reasonable cost; take advantage of existing technology and local distribution networks; cost-effective public health intervention -fortificants need to be accessible; need to be well absorbed in foods and not taste bad preferable to use food vehicles that are centrally processed, and to have the support of the food industry
Micronutrient: Iodine deficiency:
-causes goiter -Currently, 2 billion people are at risk for iodine deficiency -In India about 500 million people get too little iodine, 54 million have goiters -Moreover, severe deficiency of iodine during pregnancy can lead to infants that develop mental retardation
Micronutrients‐WHO‐2006 Best way of preventing micronutrient malnutrition?
-ensure consumption of a balanced diet that is adequate in every nutrient (very difficult; food fortification has been a very useful alternative: can deliver nutrients to a lot of people w/out radically changing diets)
Micro-Nutrients and Health Reading: Iron:
-essential for maternal and fetal health, learning, productivity -helps produce haemoglobin -critical for motor and cognitive development in childhood, and for physical activity in all humans -can develop anemia - fetus and placenta both need additional iron. Iron supplementation during pregnancy lowers the risk of maternal mortality due to haemorrhage -infants with anaemia caused by iron deficiency have lower mental scores and lower motor scores than infants without anaemia
Food security:
-exists "when all people, at all times, have access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life" -In 2013, 85.7% of American households were food secure throughout the entire year.
Micro-Nutrients and Health Reading: Zinc:
-fights diarrhoea and infection, promotes growth -promotes immunity, resistance to infection, and the growth and development of the nervous system -It also promotes the production of antibodies against intestinal pathogens
Micro-Nutrients and Health Reading: Iodine:
-fundamental for intelligence of next generation -required by developing fetuses, impacts brain development -can lead to 13 point increase in IQ
Hidden Hunger, Video:
-hidden malnutrition in West Africa, impacts many children, even those who appear to be healthy: -Helen Keller international, works to distribute critical vitamins and minerals, esp. Vitamin A which prevents child blindness and mortality -challenge of micronutrient malnutrition isn't one of cost, but of distribution to the poorest; one way is to add those vitamins and minerals to common staples of the local diet -Guinea, leading flour mill: HKI helping fortify it with iron, folic acid and vitamin D; fortification process costs nothing, help stave off anemia and maternal mortality and reduce cognitive impairment in growing kids -if these kids did not have vitamin and mineral deficiencies, they would not be dying; they would still be getting certain diseases but their immune systems could fight them off
What is Hunger? Reading: A person needs about 1800 kcal per day as a minimum energy intake. If you don't get that you are likely to be suffering from chronic hunger:
-human body will start to feed on itself: fat, muscle tissue and finally the organs -many starving people actually die from hunger-related diseases such as tuberculosis, dysentery or typhoid which a weak body is unable to fight
Micronutrient: Vitamin A Deficiency:
-leading cause of child blindness -The WHO estimates that each year 250,000 to 500,000 children become blind from lack of vitamin A -Vitamin A supplements given a few times a year could prevent it
What's the Impact of Hidden Hunger? Reading: Vitamin A Deficiency:
-leading cause of preventable blindness in children -increases the risk of disease and death from severe infections, diarrhoea and measles -In pregnant women, it causes night blindness and can increase the risk of maternal mortality -Babies can be protected from vitamin A deficiency through breastfeeding, and children and adults through vitamin supplements and food fortification. But a diversified diet is the best way of providing an adequate intake
What is Hunger? Reading: Hidden Hunger:
-make people susceptible to infectious diseases -impair physical and mental development -reduce their labour productivity and increase the risk of premature death
Malnutrition:
-means badly nourished -characterized by inadequate consumption of protein, energy and micronutrients -According to the World Health Organization (WHO), it is estimated that malnutrition contributes to more than 1/3 of all child deaths -Even if a person gets enough food, but not the appropriate nutritional requirements, they will become malnourished
Overweight and Obese:
-over 1.9 billion adults in the world -During the past 20 years there has been a dramatic increase inobesity in the United States. This raises concern because of its implications for the health of Americans. -Obesity increases the risk of many diseases and health conditions, such as coronary heart disease and type 2 diabetes.
Micro-Nutrients and Health Reading: Folate:
-production of new cells, folate promotes the healthy early development of the spine, spinal cord, skull and brain -reduces number of cases of neural tube defects
Micro-Nutrients and Health Reading: Vitamin A:
-vital for survival and sight -boost immune system -reduces mortality in children between 6 months and 5 years of age -allows for adaptation to dark lighting conditions -promotes healthy eye surface membranes -prevents scarring of cornea -prevents xerophthalmia, a serious eye disorder
Micronutrients:
-vitamins and minerals -Worldwide about 2 billion people suffer from micronutrient deficiencies -Deficiencies in iron, iodine, vitamin A and zinc are among the top causes of death from disease in developing countries
Micronutrients‐WHO‐2006 Why has interest in malnutrition increased greatly over the past few years?
1)realization that micronutrient malnutrition contributes substantially to the global burden of disease --reduced resistance to infections, metabolic disorders, and delayed or impaired physical and psychomotor development --applicable to designing strategies for prevention and control of HIV/AIDS, malaria and tuberculosis, and diet‐related chronic diseases 2)it is not uniquely the concern of poor countries -represent represent a public health problem in some industrialized countries -iodine deficiency in Europe; iron deficiency in world -increase diet of processed foods, adversely impacts micronutrient intake
Josette Sheeran, Ending Hunger Now:
Knowledge: -Breastfeeding children in first 6 months of life can save them; knowledge should be spread about this; want to make sure mother's have enough enrichment and teach them about breastfeeding Food Technology: -parents cannot obtain the nutrition for their children, it is not available; working to transform technologies available in food industry to be available for traditional crops (made with vitamins matched exact to what brain needs), costs 17 cents to produce; we should unlock technologies that are commonplace in richer world to transform food School Feeding: -when disaster strikes, people don't have anything to fall back on -many kids can't go to school b/c they have to beg and find a meal; -transformative impact on countries where girls don't go to school; offer a meal to girls in school, enrollment rates increase; they will stay in school later if there is food present Warehouses: -boom and bust cycles for food -during lean season, village manages these warehouses; during harvest, put it back with interest (add in food); villages with these warehouses have not needed food aid Digital Food: -food is present in areas, but people can't buy it (starvation) -swipe card, women can get 9 food items; have to be nutritious and locally produced -Provide small farmers with enabling environment; poor farmers are provided with guaranteed market; their yields have increased a lot -School Feeding Program -1/3 of the food has to come from small farmers; costs very little GDP
The Obesity Epidemic Video, Notes:
What has contributed to rise in obesity? -societal, economic, cultural conditions have all contributed -Americans eating more processed foods, eating out more frequently; high in sugar, calories, fat -in poor/rural communities: less access to healthy food; cheaper -technology/way we build our communities: -watch TV; communities built in a way that make it difficult/unsafe to be active -students aren't getting quality PE in schools SOLUTIONS: -eat fruits and veggies, drink water -parents restrict TV viewing to less than 2 hours per day -communities can expand access to farmers markets -communities can advocate for quality nutrition/ PE in school -allow for easy access to parks, grocery stores, traffic safety measures -states can provide incentives for businesses to establish it in low income areas -employers can offer healthy programs for employees -employers can provide locations for women to breastfeed; babies who are breastfed are less likely to be overweight
Although there is enough food to feed everyone in the world...
many people do not have access to it
What is Hunger? Reading: Key causes of hunger are:
natural disasters, conflict, poverty, poor agricultural infrastructure and over-exploitation of the environment. Recently, financial and economic crises, and the drastic increase in food prices in 2008 have pushed even more people into hunger
What is Hunger? Reading: UN FAO, defines food insecurity as:
people lack secure access to sufficient amounts of safe and nutritious food for normal growth and development and an active and healthy life
Challenges to Feed the World:
‐ Population growth (world population today is almost 7 billion) ‐ Differences in agricultural output in various regions of the world ‐ Poverty ‐ Cost of food ‐ High food prices ‐ Oil price ↑ transport costs ‐ Use of food crops for biofuel production ‐ Others, such as war, natural disasters
