Food and Culture Essay #2 (Essay Sample)

The Politics of Food Production
Name
Course
The Politics of Food Production
REQUIRED
The Politics of Childhood Nutrition
Q1
The National Center for Children in Poverty (NCCP) (2015) indicates that in the USA, 16 kids (22% of all kids) live under the poverty line suggested by the Federal government, i.e. in families of four with an annual income that is less than $23, 550. Normally, in order to live above this line, such a family needs double this amount. In the UK, only 3.7 million kids live under the poverty line; this is equivalent to 28 percent of all kids in the UK or 9 kids per group of 30 (CPAG, 2015). The USA has close to 74 million kids while the UK has close to 15 million kids. The USA seems to have a percentage of kids living below the poverty line when the two countries are compared. Poverty limits parents’ decision-making when the nutrition of their kids is considered. Because of a low income, they can only provide what they can afford even if it is not nutritional. This research shows that family income has a direct link to the nutrition of kids; the lower the income, the poorer the nutrition.
Q2
Childhood obesity is influenced by Food and Drug Agency policies and child protection agencies. The FDA must screen all food-stuff on the market to ensure that what is sold is authentic and nutritionally sound. Federal, state-based, and private child protection agencies should do more in educating families on how to prevent childhood obesity. To some extent though, there are other societal factors such as culture that are hard to control that contribute to poor health among children including obesity.
Q3
High profile people like Michelle Obama can help champion good nutrition among kids. Their influence can have a positive impact. Michelle introduced the ‘Let’s Move’ initiative that seeks to reduce the menace of childhood obesity. It is anchored on various strategies including common sense. It has succeeded in creating awareness among key stakeholders, but if it has to succeed more, there is a need to make it a law and have an agency to run it.
Q4
It is important that when people are arguing about the sale and marketing junk food to children, the interest of those kids must be prioritized. Junk food entrepreneurs show malice by suggesting that they are justified to sell such food. While they are justified to do business, the said business has adverse effects on kids’ health, and for that matter, they must be tightly regulated. Communities and child protectorates have the right and are justified to denounce the sale and marketing of junk food to kids because the effects of poor kids’ health normally fall on them. There must be tight policies that prohibit the production, marketing, and sale of such food. In Australia such measures have been taken, and have been made law. In Canada, during kids programs on TV, advertisement of junk food is prohibited (CSPNET, 2015).
Part 1: The Politics of Nutrition for Adults.
Q1
The concern over an increase in the number of eating disorders as a result of Americans’ poor eating habits is real and can be proved by facts. Firstly, it is expensive to consume unhealthy foods; it costs $1.50 extra per day when compared to the consumption of healthy food (Walligna, 2012). Secondly it causes diseases that are costly to treat and causes deaths and morbidity. It costs 160 billion per year to treat obesity associated with junk food. 11O million deaths across the globe were associated with unhealthy food in 2010 (Wallinga, 2012).
Q2
In the USA, women are the most affected by eating disorders and thus can be attributed femininity and commercialization of women (Wallinga, ...