Importance of Food Accessibility for the Poor Communities - Research Paper

Introduction

Food is something essential for human survival. Food is critical to the human body, and hence, human beings need food to ensure their health. Food is used for body development and overall growth. Food is defined as any substance; it may bed animal origin or plant origin that is consumed to satisfy the nutritional needs of the body. There are different types of food, categorized based on the nutritional value of the body. These types of foods include proteins, vitamins, carbohydrates, and minerals. Each has its use on the body as they provide a balanced diet. When someone consumes a portion of each of the food mentioned he or she benefits, and at the end, they have healthy food. The essay will analyze the importance of healthy food accessibility for poor communities.

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Food is very crucial to the human body. First, people require food for energy. Carbohydrate type of food is used to give people the power to execute daily activities and perform body metabolic functions(Lenka, Betts and Wollenberg 15). A human body consists of a complex system that needs to work correctly when correct portions of food are consumed. People need to eat various types of foods since the body needs many foods for support of life. Human beings deserve healthy food. Not all foods are fit for the body. Healthy eating is food that has nutritional value for the healthy growth and development of the body. What this means is that healthy food will enable the body to be healthy and disease resistant. Healthy eating does not cause any health problem to the body. For instance, large consumption of fruits and vegetables reduces the risk of developing diseases like cancer and diabetes condition. Consuming a balanced diet at an early age of a person helps the body to create a healthy immune system that is difficult to be attacked by any disease. Therefore, a balanced diet is very crucial to health. Poor communities deserve accessibility to a balanced diet for their body development. Failure to healthy food accessibility would result in malnutrition.

Healthy food is beneficial, and its failure leads to an individual eating a poor diet (Salmon et al. 103). Eating of poor diet has effects. First, there will be frequent illness since the body will have a weak immune system to cope with infections. The body will switch to survival mode due to the lack of strength to fight diseases. Some of the symptoms of poor health eating include fatigue and some sense of tiredness. If one is to maintain a poor diet, he or she will experience a lot of fatigue after work. Another effect of a poor diet is obesity. Consumption of junk foods has affected the modern generation hence developing obesity. Junk foods are the leading cause of obesity among the kids due to its high fat and sugar content. These foods also contribute to cancer and heart failure. Therefore, for healthy living, people should avoid junk foods. Lack of access to healthy food makes the poor communities to access junk food. Poor communities are forced to access unhealthy food as a result. Food and health are two interconnected aspects of the body. What people eat determines the health conditions of their bodies. Eating a balanced diet will help the body to grow and develop in good health, free-form diseases. People should be encouraged to consume healthy foods like grains, fruits, and vegetables. Hence, it is vital to access healthy food to poor communities.

As per the Rudd Report, healthy food is viewed are viewed as lean meat, fresh vegetables, whole grain among others. Poor communities which are usually the minority in the society are used to eating unhealthy. Unhealthy food is categorized as fast food, fat and other undesirable nourishments that has a high accumulation of tropical fats and salt (Hirao et al. n.p). A Continually eating these undesirable nourishments are making higher weight rates to the poor communities. In the United States, African Americans are one of the poor communities in the nation As per Bauer, 50 percent of African Americans are hefty, and four out of five African American ladies are overweight or large. "Obesity is ordinarily connected with expanded wellbeing dangers, lessened personal satisfaction and rising medicinal services costs. Ailments regarding weight issues incorporate diabetes, hypertension, coronary illness and a few types of malignant growth" (Bauer, n.p). It is clear that minorities living in urban America are eating undesirable as a result of the weight rates.

The elasticity of supply gives suppliers an upper hand in altering the prices of the commodities. One of the commodities that are easily affected is food due to its importance to human. Food is an essential commodity which should be made available for all people in society. Suppliers tend to enjoy the elasticity in altering its prices making it unfordable to the poor communities. The government normally tends to impose taxes on food commodities to control the number of such goods in the market (Anderson, Rausser, and Swinenn, p.425). This is always done with off-price control and consumer protection. It is, however, true that such tax imposition increases the prices of the goods and services typically in the market since this increases the general cost of production. As a result, the suppliers monopolize the market by raising the prices of such goods and services.

The effect is always very prudent and evident through direct observation of consumers. The poor consumers are always suppressed and made more miserable since the rise in prices is not achievable to them. The price elasticity of supply has to, therefore, purport the following so that the statement mentioned remains relevant.

The elasticity is always represented in numerical as the percentage change in the quantity supplied divided by the percentage change in price. Therefore when the coefficient is less than one, the supply of a good is said to be inelastic, and it is higher than one then it is said to be elastic. When the government thus imposes stamps on the foods, the price elasticity of demand becomes inelastic hence consumers are forced to dig deep in their pockets. Regarding that, the consumers are made poorer. The poor communities suffer the most as a result due to their.

Provision of food to the poor and the hungry members of the communities is essential in helping them stay in school and pursue education. Attending school on a hungry stomach is impossible. Food provision to the hungry and the need individual is critical in ensuring that this population gets the adequate energy that is needed for the development of the brain. Most of the cases where the mental development retardation is common usually are associated with lack of food. Therefore, provision of food will enable the children to stay in school to provide the necessary nutrients for the brain nourishment and development. Education is vital in a communal development. A community which is literate has better chances of growing on the different perspective most importantly education (Stewart 58).

This is more important than another service in the community because of it the root of any development in the community. Hunger and lack of proper nutrient intake is the main reason why most individuals are poor. Health is significant for individual growth and development. This, however, can only happen when one is well fed and is healthy. Feeding the hungry population is also essential in the alleviation of poverty among the member of the community. Most individual member of the community who is hungry does not have the energy to undertake their different economic development for personal development. Proper nutrient intake through food provision ensures that most individuals can innovate other means of development. Food is key to the development of both mental and physical development. Feeding this population of the community enables them to be able to undertake most of their economic activities since they can acquire the energy and the health which is vital for their body and the mind. Also, feeding this population in the community enables individuals to be able to start thinking of means of enhancing their personal development and after some time some relying on the food which is provided. Mental health ensures that proper growth of the individual.

Works Cited

Anderson, Kym, Gordon Rausser, and Johan Swinnen. "Political economy of public policies: insights from distortions to agricultural and food markets." Journal of Economic Literature 51.2 (2013): 423-77.

Bauer, Holly. Food Matters. Print.

Godfray, H. Charles J., et al. "Food security: the challenge of feeding 9 billion people." science 327.5967 (2010): 812-818.

Hirao, Akiko, et al. "A balanced diet is necessary for proper entrainment signals of the mouse liver clock." PLoS One 4.9 (2009): e6909

Salmon, Stefanie J., et al. "Health on impulse: When low self-control promotes healthy food choices." Health Psychology33.2 (2014): 103.

Shriver, Lenka H., Nancy M. Betts, and GenaWollenberg. "Dietary intakes and eating habits of college athletes: are female college athletes following the current sports nutrition standards?." Journal of American College Health 61.1 (2013): 10-16.

Stewart, Julia. "The World Food Programme's response to the Southern African humanitarian crisis: moving food: feature." African Security Review 12.1 (2003): 17-27.