Nutrition - Chapter 12 (Undernutrition Throughout the World)
Undernutrition in the Developing World
- AIDS - War and political/civil unrest - Extreme imbalances in the food/population ratio - High external (foreign) debt - Poor infrastructure - Rapid depletion of natural resources, such as farmland, fish, and water
Medical and Social costs of undernutrition that can result from hunger
- preterm births - mental disabilities - inadequate growth - poor school performance - decreased work output in adulthood - chronic disease
Summer Food Service Program
- residence in a low-income neighborhood or participation in a program - free, nutritious meals and snacks given to children in a low income area at a central site
Undernutrition in U.S.
45.3 Million people living below poverty line
Recombinant DNA Technology
Allows access to a wider gene pool, and it permits faster and more accurate production of new and more useful microbial, plant, and animal species
Most common regions of food insecurity/malnutriton
Asia and the Pacific
The Green Revolution
Increase in crop yields that accompanied the introduction of new agricultural technologies in less-developed countries
SNAP
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) SNAP offers nutrition assistance to millions of eligible, low-income individuals and families and provides economic benefits to communities. SNAP is the largest program in the domestic hunger safety net.
Inadequate Shelter and Sanitation
The tremendous movement of people to urban settings has caused a population redistribution that has challenged the capacity for shelter and sanitation - most of these urban poor live in overcrowded, self-made shelters which lack adequate and safe water supply - shift from rural to urban life takes its greatest toll on infants and children - poor sanitation creates a critical public health problem and raises risk for infection
Beriberi
Thiamin Deficiency - nerve degeneration
"Let's Grow Act"
U.S. legislators sponsored this bill to expand use of SNAP benefits to purchase produce at farmers markets, encourage food production on vacant land, and connect farmers with preschool programs so that young children would have access to a healthy meal
Home-Delivered Meals
- age 60 or older, homebound -noon meal delivered at no cost or for donation at least 5 days a week
Helping fix food security
- fostered by communities raising and distributing locally grown food - solution lies in helping people meet their own needs and directing them to resources and employment opportunities
Malnutrition
A condition of impaired development or function caused by either a long-term deficiency or excess in calorie/nutrient intake
Food Insecurity
A state of anxiety about running out of food or running out of money to buy more food - 2011, 14.9% of households in U.S. had food insecurity
Sustainable Development
Economic growth that will simultaneously reduce poverty, protect the environment, and preserve natural capital
When is the greatest risk for undernutrition?
Gestation, infancy, and childhood - low birth weight is a leading cause of infant deaths worldwide - many developmental problems are caused by nutritional deprivation during critical periods of brain growth - people in later years also at a great risk
Food Deserts
Impoverished areas with little access to healthy food
Goiter
Iodide Deficiency - enlarged thyroid gland
Ariboflavinosis
Riboflavin Deficiency - inflammation
Impact of AIDS Worldwide
- HIV/AIDS impairs absorption of nutrients, increases nutrient requirements, and decreases the capacity to work - can be infected with HIV through contact with bodily fluids - no official cure to AIDS - diet adequate in energy, protein, and micronutrients can help to lessen the impact of infections associated with AIDS
Agriculture and the Rapid Depletion of Natural Resources
- agriculture is approaching its limits in many areas worldwide - environmentally unsustainable farming methods have been undermining food production
War and Political Unrest
- aside from the economic impact of military spending, civil disruptions and wars are setting back the progress of the poor and contributing to massive undernutrition
Commodity Supplemental Food Program
- certain low income families such as pregnant women - USDA surplus foods are distributed by county agencies
Child and Adult Care Food Program
- children enrolled in organized child care programs and seniors in adult care programs - reimbursements given for meals supplied to children at the side
WIC (for Women/Infants/Children)
- coupons to get milk, cheese, fruit, cereal, infant formula
Food Distribution Program on Indian Reservations
- distributes monthly food packages and includes education nutrition component
Factors contributing to the problem of undernutrition
- food resources - means of distributing of food - environmentally unsustainable farming methods - limited water availability - naturally occurring devastation from droughts, excessive rainfall, fire, crop infestation, and human causes such as urbanization, war and civil unrest, poor sanitation, and AIDS
Congregate Meals for the Elderly
- free noon meal is furnished at side
School Breakfast Program
- free or reduced price breakfast
National School Lunch Program
- free or reduced price lunch
Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program
- low income elementary schools - provides fresh fruit and vegetables to increase consumption and combat childhood obesity
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (Formally Food Stamp)
- low income families - electronic benefit transfer cards
TEFAP (Emergency Food Assistance)
- low income families - provides nutrition assistance to needy Americans through distribution of USDA food commodities
Proposed Solutions
- must consider multiple interacting facts, many thoroughly embedded in cultural traditions - family planning efforts may not succeed until life expectancy increases - through education, efforts should be made to upgrade farming methods, improve crops, limit pregnancies, encourage breastfeeding when it is safe to do so, and improve sanitation/hygiene
Socioeconomic Factors Related to Undernutrition
- poverty - access to healthy food - homelessness
4 Pillars of Food Security
1. Availability 2. Access 3. Utilization 4. Stability
Millennium Development Goals by 2015
1. Eradicate extreme poverty and hunger 2. Achieve universal primary education 3. Promote gender equality and empower women 4. Reduce child mortality 5. Improve maternal health 6. Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases 7. Ensure environmental sustainability 8. Global partnership for development
Healthy Food Financing Initiative (HFFI)
2010 - targeted toward achieving long term progress and eventual relief of poverty and hunger - established to bring grocery stores, corner stores, and farmers markets to underserved communities in America so that children can have more access to healthy foods
The Local Food, Farms, and Jobs Act
2013 - encourages sustainable agriculture and the growth of local food markets - aimed at counteracting recent cuts to SNAP and other programs that promote health and create opportunities for local and minority farmers
Food Insecure
805 million people / 11.3% of the world population
What are the most critical micronutrients missing from diets worldwide
Iron, Vitamin A, Iodide, Zinc, and various B vitamins as well as selenium and Vitamin C
Famine
Large-scale loss of life, social disruption, and economic chaos that slows food production
Food/Population Ratio
More people than food - lack of contraceptives in developing countries - promoting breastfeeding also contributes to the goal of birth control - possible exception is mothers who are affected by HIV
Pellagra
Niacin Deficiency - diarrhea, dermatitis
Food pantries
Often ineffective because they can give only one box of food to each family per month
Direct Food-Aid
Only a short term solution - experts recommend more sustainable subsistence-level farming - small-scale industrial development is another way to create meaningful employment and purchasing power to vast numbers of the rural poor
One of the biggest factors affecting food insecurity/malnutrition
Poverty
Nutrition Security
Secure access to an appropriately nutritious diet, coupled with a sanitary environment and adequate heath services and care in order to ensure a healthy and active life for all household members
Who used to mainly help the hungry in the U.S
Until early 20th century, often church related organizations provided most help - beginning in early 1900s did government/local/country/state get involved
Xerophthalmia
Vitamin A Deficiency - blindness/restricted growth
Scurvy
Vitamin C Deficiency - delayed wound healing
Rickets
Vitamin D Deficiency - poorly calcified bones
Gender and Development (GAD) Approach
Works towards improving the status of women through the active participation of both men and women