Regina Keith, Senior Lecturer and Course Leader of the Global Public Health Nutrition MSc course, wrote an article for The Conversation about the long-term impact of child food poverty. The article was also republished by iNews and Metro.
In the article, Regina Keith discussed how the coronavirus pandemic has had a stark impact on household food security in the UK. She wrote: “In the short term, children who are living in food-insecure families are more likely to suffer from educational losses.
Research from the US showed that after the summer holidays, children had lost an average of one month’s worth of skills learned at school, and that poorer children may fare worst.”
Talking about how childhood food poverty can impact individuals in later life, she added: “Poor nutrition has an impact across generations. Mothers who are lacking in iron are more likely to have children who do not grow well during pregnancy and are born with low birth weight.”
She said: “The evidence is clear: children not eating a healthy diet will not perform as well at school as those who are well nourished. They are more likely to suffer from mental health problems such as stress, and as they age they will be more likely to suffer from diseases such as cancer, diabetes, heart disease and obesity.”
Read the full article on The Conversation’s website.
