Nutrition/Malnutrition
http://fhamekalewis.blogspot.com
The topic that I chose is Nutrition/Malnutrition. I chose this topic to research it for the benefit of our children and families that are living in poverty. Parents that cannot afford to feed their children properly or give them the vitamins and health care that is needed for them to live healthy lives. There are millions of children who are suffering and dying everyday due to lack of under nutrition/malnutrition and are suffering from anemia, and malaria. Children who are fighting diabetes and heart problems from being over weight due to an improper diet. Providing the parents, families with information that might be help them over come these issues is one of my upmost determinations.
I researched nutrition/malnutrition in the Africa region and found out that one third of all deaths in children under the age of five are caused by malnutrition. And according to statistics 4.6 million children each year in this region because of malnutrition. And Food insecurity in Africa threatens the lives of vulnerable people. Undnutrition is directly or indirectly responsible for 3.5 million child death ever year. Sub-Saharan Africa has one of the highest prevalence of low birth weight ranging for 7-42%.
The breastfeeding rate is low and complementary food is inadequate and inappropriate in the region. Maternal nutrition increases the risk of death of the mother at birth and may be associated with about 20% of maternal deaths. In this region malnutrition is a critical risk factor and nutrition and food security is a fundamental challenge to child survival.
This information will impact my future work by first stressing how important it is for us to keep our children healthy. Supply them with handouts and other information on how to keep their children healthy
and risk factors of unhealthy children. By researching this information is
a necessity to my future plans.
www.afro.who.int>...<ChildandAdolescentHealth
Great post, you know I never thought about it until you mentioned it but the increase obesity in the state we now have the problem of teaching parents and children the sad side affects that fast food and junk food can cause. It not the fact that children are not getting enough food to feed there mind and body it turns to become the idea that children are learning the wrong way of eating as well as how much they really should be eating. Thanks for getting me to look at things from a different view than just not enough food.
ReplyDeleteFhameka,
ReplyDeleteI remember as a little girl looking at children from Africa and thinking they were so well fed because their bellies were bloated. Then my mom told me it was because they were malnourished and sick. I felt terrible and of course wanted to make sure that I could send them all my food. Thank you for the insights to the African food shortage. I would have thought that breastfeeding would be a higher percentage due to the availability and the relative inexpensive but it could be due to the mothers inability to make milk due to her own malnourishment.
Thank you for you post. Your passion shows through all your words.
Catherine
I concur, that many times we believe children are receiving the proper nutrients base on their size. However, size isn't necessarily an indicator of proper nutrition, in fact, being over weight is a sign that one is malnourished. It is true that they are consuming food but not the right types of food. ie fruits, vegetables and grains. Gaining access to such food is difficulty for many poor people. For example, I grew up in a poor neighborhood in Washington DC where the only stores available to me were Murry's and the other high salt and surgery stores. My mother went through great pains to access foods that were healthy for us by taking a cab 10mils away to do her groceries in another part of the city that provided access to fresh fruits, vegetable and the like. We must do a better job at educating parents about nutrition and then affording them the opportunity to access nutritious foods by building store in their communities that sell nutritious food.
ReplyDeleteHello Fhameka,
ReplyDeleteGreat post....I did not know that people who consumed more calories than they should can suffer from malnutrition. Malnutrition is a serious issue. Malnutrition can be caused by physical, social, and psychological issues. Good nutrition is crucial to our wellbeing and health.
Hi Flameka,
ReplyDeleteIt is so sad to know that millions of children are suffering from malnutrition. It is true that nearly half of all childhood deaths are linked to malnutrition. Living in a place where we have problems with obesity and food is so readily available, it's hard to imagine what it's like to have nearly nothing. There is some great information on this topic on the UNICEF website. You can read it here http://www.unicefusa.org/work/nutrition/. Thanks for your insightful post!
Hello Flameka,
ReplyDeleteYou picked such a great public health topic that is effecting children not just here in the U.S., but all over. It is alarming to see the numbers of over a million children suffering form nutritional deficiencies. What I found interesting is that over eating is a form of malnutrition! You learn something new every day! You did excellent research, Flameka. Thank you for the great information
Fhameka,
ReplyDeleteyou chose a great topic, one that worries me alot. I also see this as a problem in the United States as well. Perhaps not on the scale as in Africa, but still an issue. Parents who struggle to put food on the table often buy what they can with what they have and are unable to create meals with any nutritional value. It is very sad to me that grocery stores, and food suppliers do not make it easier to help families make healthy food choices. The healthy choices are not necessarily the most affordable ones. Thank you for sharing your information!
Hey Flameka,
ReplyDeleteGreat post, I guess great minds think alike cause I picked the same topic. It's sad to see people especially children endure malnutrition. It makes you really appreciate how blessed you are.
Alisha
Flameka,
ReplyDeleteWe all know the importance of what a good meal will do for you. But I think we forget that even when we get food we have to take in consideration is this nutritious. I recently saw a segment on my local news saying it is great that we have food banks but they are not supplying the families with the nutrient foods. So the public health topic is very relevant.