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Hunger is defined as short-term physical distress caused by persistent food scarcity. People suffering from chronic hunger do not have the privilege to access nutritious food often due to food insecurity and poverty. When chronic hunger gets aggravated to a global level, it is referred to as world hunger. Hunger can lead to poor nutrition and stunt growth. There is enough food produced to feed the global population; however, in 2019, around 690 million people suffered from hunger and malnutrition (‘Action Against Hunger’, 2020). Countries such as Yemen, Chad, and Zimbabwe have the highest hunger rates globally, followed by some South Asian countries such as Afghanistan and India (Statista, 2019). Hunger can severely impact an individual's physical, mental, and social health, negatively affecting all dimensions of health. Care Australia and Food for All are some foreign aid projects provided by Australia to reduce world hunger. These organizations focus on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and incorporate them with improving primary health care of these less developed countries to reduce the rates of hunger and poor nutrition.
The United Nations defines hunger as periods when populations experience severe food insecurity or lack adequate access to nutritious and affordable food. A lack of proteins and fat mainly causes hunger. Poor nutrition includes undernutrition and overnutrition; however, global hunger centers around undernutrition. Undernutrition or malnutrition can be further categorized into protein-energy malnutrition (PEM) and micronutrient deficiency (WHO, 2020). PEM can be either acute, chronic, or acute and chronic and is caused by a deficiency in all nutrients, while micronutrient deficiency is caused by the deficiency of specific vitamins and minerals. PEM is the more common type of malnutrition that affects the population globally as proteins and fats are more satiating than carbohydrates (Streit, T., 2018).
The world agricultural system produces approximately around 4.18 x 1017 kJ per year, which is sufficient to feed around 10 billion. However, since the system produces excess carbohydrates and not enough protein and fats, around 690 million people still suffer from hunger (Hunger Math, 2012). Due to the recent Covid-19 pandemic, the rates of global hunger and poor nutrition as gone up, especially in less developed countries. Before the pandemic, Yemen, Chad, and Madagascar had the highest Global Hunger Index in 2019 (45.9, 44.2, 41.5 respectively). In the Asian-Pacific religion, around 516.5 million individuals are malnourished, and around 239 million malnourished individuals were living in sub-Saharan Africa. Globally around 821.6 million are considered starving, malnourished, or both (Statista, 2019).
Hunger is a chronic condition that severely impacts the physical, mental, and social dimensions of the health of the population of LDCs. Children of these countries are at higher risk of development and growth issues that can occur prenatally, perinatally, and during the early years. The devastating consequences on their physical health can continue and last throughout adolescence and adulthood. These include low birth weight, stunted growth, poor cognitive development, and malnourishment. The low development and growth can develop into chronic conditions such as gastritis, diabetes, strokes, and heart conditions later on in their life span.
Around 734 million people worldwide live under $1.90 a day, and a majority are unaware of what their next meal will be. This constant worry negatively affects their emotional health, eventually developing into chronic anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Research has shown that hunger can also trigger behavioral changes and mood swings, making the individual easily irritable and aggressive. This can make an individual emotionally unstable, making it difficult to complete day-to-day tasks efficiently. It can also lead to poor decision making as it hinders their ability to think coherently. Individuals may even get involved in conflicts and violent situations due to the desperate need for food due to extreme starvation. This can negatively affect the individual's social health as they can destroy and damage their relationships with the people and the community around them. Hunger aggravated aggression can make an individual act impulsively, further deteriorating their state of social health.
Hunger is a devastating contemporary global health issue, and poverty is one of the significant political and socio-cultural determinants. Hence, ending poverty and hunger is included in the United Nations' Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). SDGs consists of 17 goals to improve the standard of living and well-being of the world's population before 2030 (UN, 2020). No Poverty and Zero Hunger are goals 1 and 2, respectively. Currently, around 10% of people living under $1.90 per day, and SDG's Goal 1 focuses on ending poverty in all forms by 2030 by explicitly targeting the vulnerable communities. These include areas that have low resources, being affected by natural disasters and conflicts. Reducing global poverty can have a significant positive impact on reducing global hunger (UNDP, 2020). Zero Hunger (Goal 2) focuses on ending hunger, achieving food security and improved nutrition, and promoting sustainable agriculture. They hope to achieve this by approaching using a multi-dimensional approach, starting from social protection to safeguard safe and nutritious food, especially for children. United Nations then aims to transform food systems to achieve a more sustainable and inclusive world. Investments should be made in rural and urban areas, so people with low income have access to food and hence improve their livelihoods positively.
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