Childhood Hunger Deserves More Attention (ContributorNetwork)

COMMENTARY | You almost always see something on the television news every day in one manner or another about childhood obesity. However, it seems that the holiday season is the only time where you really hear any sort of emphasis on the epidemic of childhood hunger.

It's quite the terrible thought to think that somewhere there is a kid going to bed hungry. It happens a lot more frequently than one would think, and it is something that should get attention twelve months out of the year. Not just when it gets cold outside.

WPVI's Matt O'Donnell filed a report about two weeks ago that contained a starting fact: In Philadelphia alone, one out of every three children lives in poverty. This means that, in all likelihood, they do not get enough food. Due to rampant unemployment, even food banks are being stretched to their limits.

So what can be done? First off, if Reuters says "Sesame Street" introduced a hungry Muppet this past October; we are far behind on correcting this issue. It's sad that a PBS children's show has to introduce a character that's malnourished to drive home the point that there are hungry children. School districts all over the country need to put more emphasis on their lunch programs than they are. I'm certain that if they can find the money to hire a person whose sole job is to sit by the front door and hand out tardy slips; than they can figure out a way to make it so kids get a little more to eat around noontime.

The New York Times recently reported that Congress will soon vote on a bill that would make it so folks that make more than $1 million a year would not be eligible for food stamps. See where the problem is? We live in a country where the only meal some kids get is at school. And there are millionaires eligible for food stamps!

The point is this: There needs to be more attention given to the issue of childhood hunger. Kids shouldn't go hungry, period. The country as a whole needs to pay attention to this horrible issue the whole year, not just when the red kettles are in front of the supermarket.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/parenting/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20111216/hl_ac/10687523_childhood_hunger_deserves_more_attention

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