World Hunger

World Hunger is a major issue in today’s society, and we have so many people that are hungry on the earth. There are around 850 million people in the world that are suffering from hunger and malnutrition problems. There are around six billion people in the world; there shouldn’t be that many people that are starving. Jimmy Carter said, “We know that a peaceful world cannot long exist, one third rich and two thirds hungry.” We need to do everything we can to help them.

The issue of world hunger and malnutrition is so widespread and far-reaching. It touches all walks of life and all aspects of life. Not only is it a social problem but it is an economic problem as well. Those that face extreme poverty seem to be the most effected. Third world and developing countries have the most serious issues associated with hunger.

There are many advocacy groups trying locally, nationally, and globally to help against hunger. Even celebrities use their names to help fight this issue. Every bit of attention to the need to help and education about the situation is helpful. It takes more than money.

Education about hunger to those who can help, like governments, and also to those who need assistance is key. Health issues arise because of hunger issues. Hunger begins with poverty and the inability to provide for oneself. It then leads to malnutrition and deficiencies which lead to disease and then ultimately death.

People, right now, are dieing from hunger and hunger-related issues. Every day we have 2,400 people that die from hunger. That means someone leaves this life about every 3.6 seconds.

It is not because we don’t have enough food. We have enough food for everyone to have nearly two loaves of bread per day. It is more about availability and money for the food and distribution of the goods.

About one fourth of the world lives on less than one dollar a day, and three billion people live on around two dollars or less each day. That is not a lot of money, the richest one percent make as much as the poorest fifty seven percent make. The richest fifth of the world consumes eighty six percent of goods, such as food and technology, and the poorest get about one percent of those goods. That is a major difference. There needs to be more equity in the system.

The children suffer most from hunger and malnutrition. They say that three fourths of the deaths caused by hunger are children under the age of five. That is really sad. There are around 15 million hungry children that die every year from hunger. There are 160 million children that are hungry in the world. One half of the hungry children are in South Asia. There are 183 million children today that weigh less than they should. There are a lot of cases of hunger, and the children are suffering most. The children are our future, but if they are not helped how can they help us? Even though the mortality rate is going down, we still need to do everything we can to help the hungry. They are dieing at an alarming rate, and need to be helped. Even though most of the hungry are in Asia, Africa and India, it doesn’t mean it isn’t happening here. “If you want to eliminate hunger, everybody has to be involved,” said Bono. We all need to stop and fight against the hunger and malnutrition that is going on today.