hungry children

Hungry Children in Rich America

“If another country was doing this to our children, we’d be at war” states Jeff Bridges in the movie documentary about hunger titled “A Place at the Table”.   Tantamount to declaring war, the Children’s Defense Fund of Ohio recently released their report on just how deep the effects of hunger are for children.  In it they conclude:

“Food insecure children are more likely to be behind in social skills and reading performance in kindergarten. By elementary school they are four times more likely to need mental health counseling. Risks keep accumulating: malnutrition from childhood food insecurity has been linked to adult diseases including diabetes, hyperlipidemia and cardiovascular disease. The stress and anxiety of early childhood hunger also make it harder to learn skills that help later relationship development, school success and workplace productivity.”

It resounds as yet another call to action not only to solve hunger but to rescue those who are most at risk and most vulnerable to hunger’s effects.

Please take a moment to read the full article written by Marian Wright Edelman of the Childrens Defense Fund and published by Huffington Post.