Negative Effects Of Malnutrition

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Recommended: Introduction to food insecurity

Food insecurity is the inability to receive food anytime for a healthy lifestyle. This lifestyle can often lead to malnutrition. The definition of malnutrition is the lack of nutrition due to insufficient food and nutrient intake. Malnutrition is a prevalent and an ongoing issue for millions of children throughout all cultures. Ranging from infancy to school aged kids, malnutrition and food insecurity can have vastly negative effects on children’s learning and brain development. During infancy the brain is developing at a very rapid rate. Neurons are being created and then producing dendrites and axons which allow for signals from the nerves to travel across a synapse (Prado & Dewey, 2015). However, if the infant is not getting the correct nutrition then the brain is not able to properly develop. Nutrients are important for the growth of the neurons and critical for brain growth. In many countries where malnutrition is prevalent infants are not receiving a high enough …show more content…

From 2007 to 2009 the percent of households that were described as having very low food security jumped from 8.3% up to 10.6%. The households with which the children are growing up in are also having an impact. Roughly 50% of households that were low-income and headed by the female or mother were food insecure. These food insecurities are having severe consequences on child development. This includes the children’s overall physical health and also the children’s ability in school. Children who lived in food insecure houses show physical symptoms occurring such as being more anxious and having stomachaches. Children who are experiencing food insecurity in their lives are showing lower math and reading scores versus children who are not food insecure. Education is crucial for child development and if the child is not getting proper nutrition then they are not going to be able to focus in school and this results in lower

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