World Child Hunger Essay

According to the World Food Program (WFP), hunger is the world’s number health risk. it kills more people every year than AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis combined. We live in a world where people have billions of dollars to themselves, money that they don’t need and will never be able to finish. Yet every five second a child dies of hunger. The kids are the ones that are most affected, to think about how children go to bed hungry is disturbing.

There are many reasons of hunger, but the fundamental problem is poverty. It causes a child to be unable to enjoy their rights, poor health, lack of resources, and they don’t have the full potential to participate in the society. Wikipedia defines hunger as a term to describe the social condition of people who frequently experience the physical sensation of desiring food. Hunger is also referred to as malnutrition or undernutrition.

Malnutrition is the lack of enough protein, deficiency (vitamins) and food that provides energy.

There are three forms undernutrition in children; Stunting, Wasting, Underweight. It is most commonly assessed through the measurement of weight and height. According to The United Nations Children’s Fund (UNCIEF), approximately 195 million children less than 5 years old in the developing world, or about one in three are affected by stunting. 13% percent of children under 5 years old in the developing world are wasted while 129 million children less than 5 years old in the developing world are underweight. Many times, a child’s struggle against hunger begins before he or she is born because the mother is undernourished. 7.6 million is the estimated number of childhood deaths.

Asia and the Pacific region is home to over half the world’s population and nearly two thirds of the world’s hungry people. In 2006 UNICEF reported that undernutrition contributes to five million deaths of children under five each year in developing countries. Affecting an estimated 2 billion people, Iron deficiency is the most prevalent form of malnutrition worldwide. It also reported in 2009 that an estimated 146 million children in developing countries are underweight – the result of acute or chronic hunger.

All too often, child hunger is inherited: up to 17 million children are born underweight annually, the result of inadequate nutrition before and during pregnancy. Among the key causes of hunger are natural disasters, conflict, poverty, poor agricultural infrastructure and over-exploitation of the environment. The fight of hunger has become the fight of many individuals. Apart from the United Nation who has a lot of agencies: Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the World Food Program (WFP), International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD), United Nations Children’s Fund (UNCIEF), World Health Organization(WHO) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) all these agencies are trying to fight hunger, there are many other organizations and individuals.

We had organization also like Save the Children. It is an independent organization creating lasting change in the lives of children in need in the United States and around the world. World Vision is another organization; it is working at the grassroots in countries all around the world. World Vision is dedicated to working with children, families and communities, regardless of religion, race, ethnicity or gender, to overcome poverty and hunger. Some Celebrities like Angelina Jolie, Sean Penn and George Clooney among others aren’t just sitting back; they have also joined the fight to end hunger. Some stars view their popularity as an opportunity to really effect change.

UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Angelina Jolie uses her public profile to promote humanitarian causes through the mass media. Since the earthquake in Haiti, Sean Penn funded the J/P Haitian Relief Organization and has been running a camp of 55,000 people. George Clooney has also spent years devoting energy to fighting homelessness in America through the Realizing the Dream campaign, and his own charity. Hunger can be conquered, but everyone needs to get involve and help. The kids are the ones that are most affected, to think about how children go to bed hungry is disturbing. In some other third world country the problem is not having enough but in this country it’s the problem of not caring enough. People are wasteful, and don’t want to share.

A country like America that has such great wealth, no child needs to go hungry. Martin Luther King Jr. once said “Why should there be hunger and deprivation in any land, in any city, at any table, when man has the resources and the scientific know-how to provide all mankind with the basic necessities of life? There is no deficit in human resources. The deficit is in human will. “ The fight of hunger has become the fight of many individuals. Apart from the United Nation who has a lot of agencies.

FAO news release, 14 September 2010, 925 million people do not have enough to eat and 98 percent of them live in developing countries. Why do we still have such high percentage especially in the U.S? For a country that prides itself on wealth and power, why are 17 million children struggling with hunger every day? It is our responsibility as individuals to get involved. It should be counted among our blessings that so many of us do not know the real pain of hunger. So, next time you pass someone on the street who is in need, remember how blessed you are, and don’t turn away. I dream of a day when all children are loved, safe, have warm homes and enough to eat.

References

* http://www.worldhunger.org/articles/Learn/child_hunger_facts.htm

* http://www.worldhunger.org/articles/Learn/world%20hunger%20facts%202002.htm

* http://www.wfp.org/hunger/stats

* http://www.thedailymeal.com/10-celebrities-fighting-hunger-america * http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hunger
* http://www.betterworld.net/quotes/endhunger-quotes.htm * http://abcnews.go.com/US/hunger_at_home/hunger-home-american-children-malnourished/story?id=14367230