Although economic times seem to have improved since the Great Recession, many people still struggle to make ends meet.
One measure of this is food insecurity – limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally adequate foods.
Nationally, food insecurity has come down in the past two years. Data from 2014 show food insecurity in the US at 15.4 percent. El Paso fared better at 11 percent.
However, if we consider data from households with children, food insecurity rates in El Paso climb to 25.5 percent, well above the U.S. rate of 20.9 percent. To think that more than 1 in 4 of the children living in our county does not have enough food to eat is heartbreaking, but it also means they are at greater risk of many health problems.
When children live in a food insecure environment, they are more likely to be hospitalized and have a higher risk of obesity, asthma, and behavioral and social issues such as fighting, hyperactivity, anxiety, and bullying.
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