Some people question why the CROP Hunger Walk gives 75% of the money raised to people overseas and only 25% remains here. The answer is that while nutrition is a problem in the U.S. almost no one dies from starvation—from a heart attack because of obesity maybe, but not from hunger. Following are some statistics.
Hunger and World Poverty. About 21,000 people die every day of hunger or hunger-related causes, according to the United Nations. This is one person every four seconds, as you can see on this display. Sadly, it is children who die most often. Sub-Saharan Africa is the region with the highest prevalence (percentage of population) of hunger. One person in four there is undernourished. Poor nutrition causes nearly half (45%) of deaths in children under five – 3.1 million children each year.
United States
Almost 16 million children lived in food-insecure households in 2012.[12] Schools throughout the country had 21 million children participate in a free or reduced lunch program and 11 million children participate in a free or reduced breakfast program. The extent of American youth facing hunger is clearly shown through the fact that 47% of SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) participants are under the age of 18.[12] The states with the highest rate of food insecure children were North Dakota, Minnesota, Virginia, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts as of 2012.
