Hunger and Poverty in the United States: The Scary Truth
The United States is a country that prides itself on giving people the opportunity to succeed and prosper. Sadly, though, there are many who do not have this opportunity because of their economic status. Poverty rates in the U.S. are at an all-time high with one out of five Americans living below the poverty line and more than 50 million people struggling with hunger every day. This blog post will discuss what it means to be poor or hungry in America today and how we can help those in need by making small changes in our lives.
What it means to be Poor in American
The definition of poverty varies depending on who you are talking to. For the purpose of this blog post, I will define being poor as having limited access to resources that others have available in their lives. These resources include food, shelter and education among other things necessary for modern life. Many people do not realize just how many Americans live below the poverty line every day because they do not know what living in poverty is really like or they turn a blind eye when confronted with evidence of hungry children or hungry adults.
The Poverty Line in America today is defined as a four-person household having an annual income of $23,492 according to the U.S. Census Bureau . The poverty line for smaller households varies from state to state and can be determined by this formula: multiplying the number of people in your family times ten dollars per day (or thirty-three dollars per person, per day) to find out how much you need to earn each year before taxes are taken into account. For example if I have three people living at home with myself that would mean we would need about $70 a day every single day just so we could survive without any help whatsoever from outside resources such as food stamps or charity donations etc.
Malnutrition in America
Being hungry is defined as "not having enough food or the right kind of nutrition for your body". It can affect people of all ages, including children and senior citizens who may require specific types of nutrients that are not readily available with just any meal plan. According to Feeding America , "13 percent of American households have at least one family member struggling with hunger every single day while 32 million Americans face hunger each year on a regular basis even though they live in "food secure" homes". The problem these families face is that there simply isn't enough money coming into their household each week to purchase groceries so many rely on cheap processed foods high in calories but low in nutritional which only exacerbates the health problems.
Community Food Runner's goal is ensure people and families always have access to nutritional food. The idea is to think globally, and act locally.
