DEFINITIONS (Words we wish we didn’t have to use)

HUNGER is the "uneasy or painful sensation caused by a lack of food; the recurrent and involuntary lack of access to food."

FOOD INSECURE means that one is unable to consistently access adequate amounts of nutritious food necessary for a healthy life.

http://feedingamerica.org/

Startling Statistics for West Virginia

West Virginia has a 19.8% rate of food insecurity for children under 5 years of age.

http://feedingamerica.org/news

In 2008, 11% of West Virginia’s children under the age of 18 lived in families with income less than 50% of the Federal poverty line.

http://www.hungerreport.org/2010/data/income-security/115-children-and-poverty

Hunger Statistics: Food Insecurity & Very Low Food Security

• In 2009, 50.2 million Americans lived in food insecure households, 33 million adults and 17.2 million children
• In 2009, 14.7 percent of households (17.4 million households) were food insecure.
• In 2009, 5.7 percent of households (6.8 million households) experienced very low food security.
• In 2009, households with children reported food insecurity at almost double the rate for those without children, 21.3 percent compared to 11.4 percent.
• In 2009, households that had higher rates of food insecurity than the national average included households with children (21.3 percent), especially households with children headed by single women (36.6 percent) or single men (27.8 percent), Black non-Hispanic households (24.9 percent) and Hispanic households (26.9 percent).
• In 2009, 7.8 percent of seniors living alone (884,000 households) were food insecure.

USDA.Mark Nord, M. Andrews, S. Carlson.
Household Food Security in the United States, 2009.

A Snapshot of Child Hunger

Child hunger hampers a young person's ability to learn and becomes more likely to suffer from poverty as an adult. Scientific evidence suggests that hungry children are less likely to become productive citizens.

• Nearly 14 million children are estimated to be served by Feeding America, over 3 million of which are ages 5 and under.    http://www.secondharvest.org/learn_about_hunger/child_hunger_facts.html - 1#1
• According to the USDA, an estimated 16 million children lived in food insecure households in 2008.
• Proper nutrition is vital to the growth and development of children, particularly for low-income children. 62 percent of all client households with children under the age of 18 participated in a school lunch program, but only 14 percent participated in a summer feeding program that provides free food when school is out.
• 54 percent of client households with children under the age of 3 participated in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).
• 32 percent of pantries, 42 percent of kitchens, and 18 percent of shelters in the Feeding America network reported "many more children in the summer" being served by their programs.
• Research indicates that even mild undernutrition experienced by young children during critical periods of growth impacts the behavior of children, their school performance, and their overall cognitive development.
• During the 2009 federal fiscal year, 19.5 million low-income children received free or reduced-price meals through the National School Lunch Program.

http://feedingamerica.org/faces-of-hunger/hunger-101/child-hunger-facts.aspx