Child Hunger Statistics

Statistics

Child Hunger is a Major Issue in America

• More than 16 million, or almost one in five, American children are at risk of hunger. Each child facing hunger potentially goes to bed hungry at some point in the year due to a lack of household resources to secure an adequate food supply.

• In 40 states and Washington, D.C., 20 percent or more of the child population is living in food insecure households.

  • The District of Columbia (32.3%) and Oregon (29.2%) had the highest rates of children in households without consistent acces to food.

  • The top five states or districts with the highest rate of food insecure children are Arizona, Arkansas, Oregon, Texas and Washington, D.C.

  • For more information about where hunger in America lives, visit Feeding America’s Hunger Map

• Food insecurity exists in 14.5 percent of all U.S. households:

  • 35.1 percent of all single-mom households.

  • 40.2 percent of all households at or below the poverty line.

• When children are in school, they have access to breakfast and lunch through federal programs like the National School Lunch Program and the School Breakfast Program, but there is a significant gap in participation for programs that feed children when they are not in school.

  • During the 2009-2010 school year, 20 million children received free or reduced-price lunches through the National School Lunch Program, but only 2.3 million children received meals during the summer months of 2009 through the Summer Food Service Program.

  • Only 14 percent of households with children served by Feeding America participate in the Summer Feeding Program.

  • Nearly 230,000 children participated in the BackPack™ Program in 2009, which fills the need over weekends and short breaks.

  • 23,618 children participated in the Kids Cafes program in 2009, which feeds children afterschool.

Hunger Means Children Rely on Support from Food Banks

• Hunger disproportionately affects children—nearly 40 percent of the people who turn to charities for hunger relief are children, although they represent only 25 percent of the U.S. population.

• Households with children experience food insecurity at almost double the rate of households without children.

• Nearly 1 in 5 children in this country is served by Feeding America, the nation’s largest network of food banks.

  • Nearly 14 million children are estimated to be served by Feeding America.

  • More than 3 million of those children are ages five and under – representing nearly 13 percent of all children under age five in the United States.

• Feeding America clients with children in their households were often faced with the tough decision of providing food for their family and paying for other necessities. For example:

  • More than 35 percent had to choose between food and medical care.

  • Nearly 55 percent made trade-offs between food and utilities.

  • More than 46 percent had to choose between food and paying rent or the mortgage.

Children Also Rely on Federal Programs to Ensure Access to Nutritious Food

• 59.2 percent of food-insecure households participated in at least one of the three major Federal food assistance programs –Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (formerly Food Stamp Program), The National School Lunch Program, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, in 2010.

• 31.2 million children participated in the National School Lunch Program each day during the school year through more than 101,000 schools and residential child care institutions; and 11 million students in more than 88,000 schools and residential childcare institutions received a free or reduced-price breakfast.

• The Summer Food Service Program provided meals to 2.2 million children in summer 2009.

Consequences of Child Hunger

• Preschool and school-age children who experience severe hunger have higher levels of chronic illness, anxiety and depression, and behavior problems than children with no hunger.

• Moderate nutritional vulnerability, the kind often seen among children facing hunger in the United States, can hinder cognitive development and impair young children’s abilities over a lifetime.

• Children who struggle with hunger face additional problems, such as:

  • Slower growth and inhibited brain development

  • More illnesses, including stomachaches, headaches, colds, ear infections and fatigue

  • Greater susceptibility to obesity and its harmful health consequences

  • Lower concentration and alertness in school

  • Lower academic achievement

  • Increased likelihood of developing psychosocial and behavioral issues, such as:

    • More aggressive behavior

    • Higher levels of hyperactivity, anxiety, and/or passivity

    • Greater need for mental health services

  • Less energy for social interactions

  • Unable to adapt as effectively to environmental stresses

• Individuals who face hunger as a child struggle even after their childhood years:

  • They are not as well prepared physically, mentally, emotionally or socially to perform effectively in the contemporary workforce.

  • Collectively, they have lower levels of educational and technical skills which reduce the overall competitiveness of the workforce.

  • Chronic undernutrition can also lead to greater health care costs for not only families of children experiencing hunger, but for future employers of those individuals who faced hunger as a child.