Scacity of Food in The World

World hunger is defined as the scarcity of food that is on a global level and often split into two types of malnutrition. The first being PEM or protein-energy malnutrition which is a lack of calories and protein. PEM is often referred to when discussing world hunger as it being very common in developing nations. With protein being necessary for crucial body functions such as the development of muscles and supplying of necessary amino acids, it is critical to the developing body. Without proper intake, the malnutrition contributes to growth failure often resulting in either two types of acute malnutrition called wasting and nutritional edema. Wasting is described by rapid weight loss and is a cause of death and nutritional edema is a form of swelling due to insufficient protein intake. Another principal type of growth failure is stunting, being a slow cumulative process due to the inadequate intake of various nutrients.

Stunting often affects children visually as they will look much younger than their actual age. An organization called the United Nations Children’s Fund estimates that over 161 million children worldwide are affected by stunting. The second type of malnutrition is called micronutrient deficiency. Though not on the scale of protein-energy malnutrition it is very important and affects millions of children. Micronutrients such as Vitamin A is vital to the immune system defense against diseases. Vitamin A deficiency may lead to blindness and slowed growth. It is estimated that up to 250 million preschool children are Vitamin A deficient with an estimated 500,000 children becoming blind every year. Unfortunately over half of them die within an year of losing their sight. As of now the majority of malnourished people are in the developing regions with over 700 million people suffering from undernourishment in 2016. Fortunately that number has decreased by 40 percent compared to the world in the 1990s. However, in developing nation, up to 20 percent of the population is chronically malnourished with Asia and the sub- Saharan regions of Africa having majority of the global malnourished people.

Food consumption worldwide is very different for developing countries and developed countries. WIth low income people spending up to 80% of their income on food and developed nations such as America spend less than 10% on food. Americans alone waste over 100 trillion calories worth of food everyday. Globally grain makes up over 45% of the diet of people and that number is expected to rise by 2030 with global demand in general will rise up to 35 percent. As of now agriculture provides jobs for nearly 40% of the world’s population. In developing countries where technology is not as affluent agriculture depends on the seasonal rainfall, so a drought has the potential to create mass famine that can devastate a countries population.