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Hunger is a worldwide crisis. There are tons of people from different parts of the world who are undernourished or suffering from lack of food security. The worst part is, many of them are children and the elderly, who are not capable of providing food for themselves and are dependent on others.
In a web post by World Hunger, they shared that the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization noted that there are about 815 million people out of the 7.6 billion people in the world who are suffering from chronic undernourishment. Starvation and malnourishment can have a detrimental effect on the body. These detrimental effects don’t just affect children and the elderly, but even seemingly healthy adults.
StyleCraze shared on their website that hunger can lead to all sorts of problems such as a multitude of mental and physical effects. They also defined starvation as a condition caused by a severe deficiency in one’s calorie intake. While some people starve themselves in an attempt to slim down, others do so due to eating disorders such as anorexia or bulimia, and the rest have no choice.
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Hunger and Children
The number of children who experience hunger is very alarming. Food Aid Foundation reported that hunger causes nearly half (45%) of deaths in children who are under 5 years old, which is equivalent to 3.1 million children each year. Reports also stated that 66 million primary school-age children attend their classes while hungry.
Some teachers have also reported that children from impoverished families come to school tired, hungry, angry, and confused. The Guardian noted that these students are seen wearing dirty and ill-fitting uniforms, which make them suffer from anxiety and behavior issues, which affect their learning abilities.
In a survey conducted by the National Education Union (NEU) of 8,600 school leaders, teachers, and support staff, nine out of 10 who took the survey agreed that poverty and hunger have a negative effect on their pupils’ education.
These children who experience poverty end up feeling embarrassed or ashamed about their living conditions, which makes them suffer socially. These feelings might make it hard for them to interact with other people around them or might trigger them to engage in negative fighting or stealing.
It is important for children to have good nutrition since it has a direct link to their physical growth and development. The Healthfully website shared that children who experience chronic hunger are at risk of not receiving the necessary vitamins and minerals that their bodies need to ensure the full potential of their development. Hunger also brings down their defenses against sickness since it weakens the immune system, which is needed to ward off illnesses.
Hunger and Mood
Most people are unaware that their mood changes when they are hungry. Some experience unusual annoyance, while others feel a little more emotional about small matters. When you skip a meal, you usually hear your stomach growling and, eventually, you’ll find yourself snapping at the person talking to you who didn’t mean you any harm.
Perhaps what you’re experiencing is your being ‘hangry’. Sciencing defined ‘hangry’ as a term that came from the combination of the words “hungry” and “angry”. Your bad temper is the result of your being hungry, and although some people consider it as a meme, scientists were able to conduct a study to find out if the feeling of being hangry was normal.
The Sciencing website explained that the brain and stomach work together in order to sound the alarm that they are already hungry or full. Whenever you eat a plateful of a meal, the nerves in your digestive tract will send signals to the hypothalamus which let you know that you have already eaten. On the other hand, when you feel hungry, you will experience a decrease of blood sugar levels and the hypothalamus will also receive signals which tell your brain that you are starving.
Moreover, hunger can cause one to feel angry. In a study published by the American Psychological Association (APA), scientists from the University of North Carolina found that being hangry is a complex emotional response. According to the study, hungry people are more likely to have a problem in their emotional awareness, which makes them react in a negative way.
Hunger and Menstruation
Starvation affects menstruation. StyleCraze reported that people who want to engage in diets which involve starvation might want to fully consider it before starting. In most cases, the weight has a direct effect on period regulation since, if the person is too underweight, the body simply ceases to produce estrogen.
Chronic hunger can cause organ damage, which makes the body’s processes slow down. This causes menstruation to stop. Meanwhile, when the body lacks the necessary fat, it restricts the cells from converting cholesterol to extra estrogen.
