The Effects of Food Insecurity on Academic Performance

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https://neurosciencenews.com/hunger-learning-11051/


Researchers in India have been conducting research on the relationships between test score discrepancies and food insecurity throughout childhood. Nearly half of the children participating in this study at some point, had experienced food insecurity in some way. This even extended to children from wealthy families - indicating that money was not necessarily the main reason for the lack of food availability. Scores from all subjects (vocabulary, reading, math, local languages and English) showed overall lower scores. There was a positive correlation between severe shortage of food and the frequency of lower test scores. It was also observed that the effects of food insecurity during mid-childhood and adolescence were associated with diminished ability in math and English. Nutritional deficiency due to lack of food is a growing issue throughout the world. This study is just a sample of the entirety. These researchers hope to utilize their findings to back policies supporting food programs and social protection for the sake of children’s education and wellbeing. On Site4Society, they aligned their policy propositions with that of the UN’s Sustainability Development Goals. These findings exhibit just how devastating these effects can be for not only the physical body but also cognitively over a lifetime.
This article resonated much stronger than it would have due to the prior knowledge learned in our physiopsychology class. In the unit pertaining to homeostasis, we discussed how consumption of the necessary nutrients directly impacts all of the systems of our bodies. For example, one of the many processes affected by nutrition would be the role of fatty acids. Fatty acids such as Omega 3 are necessary for maintaining and creating cell membranes. They also support the elasticity of synapses. Having low glucose hinders the hippocampus’ ability to learn, as it is central to learning. Proteins are necessary as they are building blocks. They are synthesized into dopamine and norepinephrine, which are necessary for thinking and working memory. These are merely small examples of how having a poor diet could negatively affect people's cognitive abilities.


Comments

  1. Taylor C. WilsonApril 22, 2019 at 8:30 AM

    During my Infant and Child Development course here at Towson, I had a professor that stressed the difference in performance of children high social economic status, and children of low social economic status. Social Economic Status is measured by the social and economic status of family members around. There is an incredible strong correlation between a child’s SES and their academic achievement and cognitive development. If a child has a significantly high social economic status, then that child will live a very successful life based upon the opportunities presented by their parents. While, lower cognitive performance is often associated with lower SES of people of lower class. These are children that do not have outstanding resources, and majority of the time experience food insecurity. They do not have the means to fully nourish their bodies, and brain. This is typically why these low SES are associated with poor health, and low functioning families, which would definitely explain the low test scores.

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  2. Kaitlyn KellerApril 22, 2019 at 9:31 AM

    I also took a child development course here at Towson. We discussed the dangers that toxic stress can have on a child. Being food insecure can cause constant stress on a child. While stress can be could being in a constant state of stress causes toxic stress. This can cause the child to stop brain development and even have some synapses in the brain die off. It can also cause the child to stop growing all together. This can also cause problems well into adult hood, that person could develop stress induced diseases later on in life such as substance abuse and depression. That child could also not preform well academically because we tend to focus on what we are lacking in life and if that child is lacking food they might not have the mental energy to focus on school and homework.

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