November 27, 2017
Empty bellies empty classrooms
A new study has found half of Maori secondary school students and two out of three Pacific young people are worried about where they will get their next meal.
The University of Auckland study published in Kotuitui: New Zealand Journal of Social Sciences Online says lack of food contributes to students’ poor health and absenteeism.
Teenagers whose families worry about money for food are more likely to be overweight, have poor mental and physical health, and miss school.
It found food security concerns have increased from 2007, affecting more than 40 percent of all New Zealand secondary school students in 2012.
Co-author Dr Jennifer Utter says interventions that address food security for families may provide a tangible means of promoting the healthy development of children and young people.
She says the increase in food insecurity mirrors the more general patterns of child poverty in New Zealand.
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