Food Insecurity

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Pages: 5

Many people in this heavily populated world have experienced food insecurity. According to the World Hunger Education Service, nearly 1 billion people suffered from hunger in 2010. The technical term for food insecurity is considered the lack of consistent physical and economic access to foods that are safe, contain an adequate amount of nutrients, and are socially and culturally acceptable for a healthy and productive life. A person that is suffering from food insecurity can be in either category: food insecure or very food insecure. Food insecurity may be temporary or seasonal but very food insecurity may cause chronic illnesses. Some of the chronic illness may include iron deficiency, vitamin A deficiency, protein energy malnutrition, and …show more content…
Food insecurity may also be associated with adverse health outcomes in children. Hunger over time may produce malnutrition. Hunger is demeaned the painful sensation that is caused by having limited to no food access. Defining hunger can be grouped under four different concepts: (1) hunger could be a motivational drive or craving for food; (2) dissatisfying feeling when one has not eaten for a long time; (3) discomfort, weakness or pain caused by involuntary lack of food; and (4) prolonged lack of food itself. A few recommendations for include: (1) USDA should continue to measure food insecurity within household regularly and establish a program that aids with measuring hunger; (2) USDA should an individual based structured research program and create a new data gathering mechanism; (3) USDA should examine the measures of the research program and thoroughly link the consequences of food insecurity, such as feelings of distress, alienation, deprivation, and adverse family and social …show more content…
This was due to a limited research base and understand of the causes and consequences of food insecurity. Many research founding have shown that there is a positive association between overweight or obesity and food insecurity. A study showed that numerous adults found in food insecure households were connected with being overweight or obese. Those adults were mothers, child-free women, and child-free men. A 12 state study was conducted on 66,553 food insecure adults, 32% of those adults had greater odds of being food insecure compare to those who were food secure. Obesity association with food insecurity is seen significantly in population groups like: women, people who have some college or graduated from college, those who have no children, or those who have two children households. A study showed that young adults around the ages of 12-18, that were either marginal food secure, low food secure, and very low food secure were more likely to have central obesity; this was compared to young adults who were high food secure. Adolescents also have an increased chance of becoming overweight or obese if maternal stress is combined with adolescent food