Food Poverty Amongst the Affluent Classes

In the World Health Organisation study referred to in my last post, 'food poverty' was defined as existing where children ‘sometimes, always, or often’ went to bed, or to school, hungry because there was not enough food at home. Either there was no food in the house, or it wasn’t edible because nobody in the house had used it to cook a meal. Parents were letting their children go hungry because they did not have the time, nor the energy, nor the will, nor the organisational know-how, to provide proper regular meals for their family.

It was found that children from both private and state schools suffered food poverty. Far from being a phenomenon of the disadvantaged, or uneducated classes, in some cases, the rate actually rose slightly amongst the wealthier classes. Following hot on the heels of the WHO study, a British study carried out by the reputable Institute of Child Health backed up the findings, showing that the children of middle class families, where both parents worked long hours outside the home, were most likely to suffer obesity and diabetes. They found a direct correlation between the hours worked by mothers and the risk of their children being obese.



Blessings on your table!
The Intellectual Foodie