Hunger In America

Everybody knows the feeling of hunger, some more than others. As the population grows, so does the amount of people that live without proper nutrition and food. Hunger and poverty is a problem many Americans face on a daily basis. These two problems have a negative impact on far too many people. The effects of hunger and malnutrition are not only devastating, but can be irreversible. Hunger is not caused by a lack of food alone, but also by the continued poverty many people face. According to the Census Bureau in 2014, 14.8 percent of Americans live in poverty. This number was lower, but has increased over the past four years. About every one in every four workers in the United States brings home wages that are below the poverty level. Many of these workers have families. The average weekly cost to feed a family of four is $216. If workers are bringing home wages below or at the poverty level, providing for their family is a huge struggle. 100 million Americans are considered poor or near poor. With so many people who are food insecure, the numbers of hungry and poor Americans are very high.
Every one in seven American households don’t have reliable access to a sufficient quantity of affordable, nutritious food. Forty-nine million Americans struggle to put food on the table, while more than twelve million children don’t have enough to eat. According to the USDA, between 2007 and 2011, the amount of food insecure households went from 8.3 percent to 10 percent. Since many children aren’t getting enough to eat at home, more than 20 million kids rely on school meals to keep them from going hungry. A surprising 40 percent of food is thrown out in the U.S every year. That’s about 165 billion dollars worth of food, which could feed 25 million people. With all these numbers being so high, there is no wonder many people suffer from hunger and the effects that come with