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Canada singled out as global leader in the fight against malnutrition


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Canadians are renowned for being too polite and too humble. While politeness may be an endearing quality, we need to start celebrating our accomplishments. Recently an independent think tank, Development Initiatives, singled Canada out as the world’s largest donor supporting basic nutrition. Over the last few years, CIDA has disbursed $104 million a year in support of global nutrition development assistance and committed millions more.

It is a savvy investment that is being applauded around the world – and should be here at home too.

Malnutrition is the underlying cause of 35 percent of all deaths among children under five. When children do survive, malnutrition in the early years of life can constrain potential as tightly as a straight jacket – leaving the young, and the adults they become, physically and intellectually weakened, more susceptible to disease or chronic illness and, in many cases, incapable of enjoying a rich full and productive life. If we don’t tackle malnutrition, all of our efforts in development are undermined, from health, to education, to economic development.

And the benefits of investing in nutrition have long-term ripple effects. The Brighton-based and influential Institute for Development Studies, has reported that eliminating under-nutrition in young children make those same children 33 percent more likely to escape poverty as adults. With health and increased earning power, the generational spiral of poverty, poor health and diminished potential can be reversed – having implications for individuals, families, communities and economies. Investing in nutrition can boost the GNP of countries and entire continents – Asia and Africa – by as much as 11 percent. More...

http://blogs.ottawacitizen.com/2013/05/15/canada-singled-out-as-global-leader-in-the-fight-against-malnutrition/

Some good news instead of the regular made up so called scandals.

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Good news. I've read about other achievements which don't seem to make headlines..

Of course not, the younger reporters want to experince their own trudeaumania, so the media is in full liberal mode. Except sun news. I have to wonder why the left is so scared of sun news that they are trying to deny them to get on cable.

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That's good but what about the hungry children in Canada? There too many people within our own country and I agree we should help out other people in other countries , we should do more for our own.

The poor in Canada are wealthier than most people in the world. Nobody dies of starvation and incidents of malnourishment are few and far between and are mostly due to a toxic home environment (implying it is the fault of individuals rather than a result of society being unable to provide access). Edited by TimG
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No surprise that someone would come back with that. Can't have the Tories doing something good ya know !! :lol:

Maybe the Harper gov and CIDA have done good work in terms of funding for malnutrition, which the OP article claims, but overall the Harper gov hasn't been very good in terms of overall international development. They just eliminated CIDA (now merged with DFAIT), and they have cut a lot of funding to CIDA (when it existed) and overall foreign development. Also, Bev Oda, who oversaw CIDA for years, was an enormous idiot.

The article and the think-tank give credit to the Canadian government for high funding in the area of malnutrition, I'll give the Harper gov some credit in this particular area of development funding, but in other areas they fall short, notably maternal health. The OP blog author needs to have a bit of perspective when she wants Canada to give itself a pat on the back.

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...

It is a savvy investment that is being applauded around the world and should be here at home too.

...

If we dont tackle malnutrition, all of our efforts in development are undermined, from health, to education, to economic development.

... eliminating under-nutrition in young children make those same children 33 percent more likely to escape poverty as adults.

...

Investing in nutrition can boost the GNP of countries and entire continents Asia and Africa by as much as 11 percent. More...

http://blogs.ottawacitizen.com/2013/05/15/canada-singled-out-as-global-leader-in-the-fight-against-malnutrition/

Canada's doing a good thing contributing to food and child welfare.

This point can't be made enough: There are children failing to thrive, dropping out because of inadequate nutrition even in developed countries like ours.

TimG points out that children living in "toxic" environments may be most at risk in Canada.

Parents' addictions, mental and physical health and poverty, workaholism too, all affect children's nutrition.

We should celebrate what Canada is doing in other countries, and we can also think about what more we can do at home to improve kids'nutrition. It has a huge impact on learning andcreativity and productivity and on our economy.

If we're not addressing it effectively for all kids, then we're not yet doing enough.

Edited by jacee
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Guest Kenneth

TimG points out that children living in "toxic" environments may be most at risk in Canada.

Parents' addictions, mental and physical health and poverty, workaholism too, all affect children's nutrition.

Then why are leftists always opposed to measures that would reduce or eliminate "toxic environments"???

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Yet we have people in Canada on social assistance who are starving and cannot eat properly. We need to sort that out first before helping anyone else out. Single adults on welfare are given $606 to pay rent, buy food, pay bills etc. This is no where near enough money to do this. People on disability have it a little better but not by much. It's disgusting that we cannot give our poor a livable allowance.

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Yet we have people in Canada on social assistance who are starving and cannot eat properly. We need to sort that out first before helping anyone else out. Single adults on welfare are given $606 to pay rent, buy food, pay bills etc. This is no where near enough money to do this. People on disability have it a little better but not by much. It's disgusting that we cannot give our poor a livable allowance.

Welfare doesn't afford good nutrition, it's true, but even in homes with sufficient income sometimes there are other issues impacting on food not getting to children when they need it.

And I think we have to look at food delivery systems for kids that supplement what's available at home.

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I said it was a good thing the Tories did but we have the same problem here and the US has it too so it not a leftist answer. The Food Bank in Canada needs more support than ever, people are still feeling the down turn of the global downturn. Perhaps if the Tories gave a little less to advertising and more to the Food Bank, we would have less malnutrition in Canada.

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I said it was a good thing the Tories did but we have the same problem here and the US has it too so it not a leftist answer. The Food Bank in Canada needs more support than ever, people are still feeling the down turn of the global downturn. Perhaps if the Tories gave a little less to advertising and more to the Food Bank, we would have less malnutrition in Canada.

Food banks aren't the answer, unless kids can use them when parents are incapacitated.

There are kids out there under 10 who manage the family, feed younger siblings, steal food when they can ... but they can't get food at the food bank, just adults.

If your mother is agoraphobic and never goes out, what does a kid do?

The government should do something, Lib, Con or whatever. Unfortunately, we're stuck in this mentality that kids are only entitled to what their parents provide, and we have no obligation beyond that. If parents don't provide sufficient food, 'well too bad.'

But it affects us all when kids underachieve: There are broad economic, social, crime and justice effects ... all aspects of society are affected when some kids don't thrive.

Edited by jacee
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The Food Bank in Canada needs more support than ever, people are still feeling the down turn of the global downturn.

I am curious how many of the people who get food at the foodbank use the cash freed up by that to buy booze and smokes. I am not against food banks - they are necessary - but we can never control how people spend the money given to them and there are irresponsible people and irresponsible people tend to be poor. Edited by TimG
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Food banks aren't the answer, unless kids can use them when parents are incapacitated.

If the parents and incapacitated then social services needs to place kids in foster homes.

We have to recognize that cannot help everyone since some people make it very difficult for people to help them.

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I am curious how many of the people who get food at the foodbank use the cash freed up by that to buy booze and smokes.

Should we let kids suffer from poor nutrition because their parents are incompetent, addicts, mentally or physically ill?

Can't we as a wealthy and capable society ensure that ALL kids are fed, regardless of parental incapacity?

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Should we let kids suffer from poor nutrition because their parents are incompetent, addicts, mentally or physically ill?

Like I said, malnourishment in Canada is largely the result of bad choices by individuals rather than a systematic problem with society. Kids in toxic home environments may need to be removed from the home.
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If the parents and incapacitated then social services needs to place kids in foster homes.

We have to recognize that cannot help everyone since some people make it very difficult for people to help them.

There aren't enough foster homes for all the children who are undernourished.

And you can't take children from their parents except in cases of abuse or extreme neglect.

What we're talking about here isn't that, but chronic undernourishment that isn't obvious, but has long term health and social impacts nonetheless ... the kids who don't 'pay attention' in class, who fall behind, dropout, perpetuate the poverty cycle.

I'd like to see us provide nutritious meals for all kids, in schools perhaps. I think we'd see a huge positive impact within a generation that would affect us all.

Nutritious food isn't 'a reward' for good parenting.

It's a necessity for every child.

Edited by jacee
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I am curious how many of the people who get food at the foodbank use the cash freed up by that to buy booze and smokes. I am not against food banks - they are necessary - but we can never control how people spend the money given to them and there are irresponsible people and irresponsible people tend to be poor.

I fail to see why people shouldn't be able to get smokes and booze at food banks too.

It's actually powerful people who tend to be responsible for most of the irresponsibility in the world - they're why there are so many poor people in the first place.

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If the government provided more money to people on social assistance and disability there wouldn't be any need for a food bank to be used regularly every month like it is now. People have to use it month after month as a regular part of their food shopping.

Its sad that in a country like Canada where corporations can get billions of dollars every year and we can send billions in foreign aid that we cannot take care of our own poor and disabled people properly. Even if they gave a food voucher/card worth $100 would be a huge help but they don't. Yet they can waste billions on ORNGE, E-health, closing gas plants. It's disgusting.

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I am curious how many of the people who get food at the foodbank use the cash freed up by that to buy booze and smokes.

That's seriously the first thing that comes to mind when you think of food banks? Probably the first thing you think about welfare also. That's a bit of an ignorant statement. Obviously there's going to be people (of any economic status given free food) who do such things. But people also use that freed up money to pay the rent, cloth their kids etc.

I am not against food banks - they are necessary - but we can never control how people spend the money given to them and there are irresponsible people and irresponsible people tend to be poor.

We have to understand that poor people as an economic group have very high levels of stress, the highest rates of mental illness, high rates of disability, the highest rates of childhood and current/lifelong levels of sexual/physical/psychological abuse etc. To deal with

that many of these people's brains chemically do not naturally produce healthy amounts of "happy" chemicals like endorphins/serotonin, dopamine etc., some people meet these chemical needs by self-medicating using drugs (alcohol, marijuana, meth, nicotine etc.) so not to feel like crap.

I don't condone drug use of any kind, but I understand why people use them. We should have more awareness programs, at food banks and for the general public (ie: alcohol & cigarettes are used by all economic classes) teaching how to deal with stress, depression/anxiety etc. in more healthy ways.

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Like I said, malnourishment in Canada is largely the result of bad choices by individuals rather than a systematic problem with society.

Poverty, and bad choices by those who are poor, are quite often linked to systematic problems within society, and is a systemic problem in itself. How many aboriginals are malnourished? Or elderly who have little/no income and are unemployable? These are systemic problems. Thus, Canadians, the government, NGO's etc. can do things to help these problems via many means, whether economic, social, political/legislative etc.

Kids in toxic home environments may need to be removed from the home.

In drastic cases yes, but taking a kid away from their family is an extremely traumatic experience for the child and family, and foster homes and (especially) group homes can be really crappy places to live. This causes major damage to the child for the rest of their lives, so it has to be a last resort. The government and social services should try to support and help improve "toxic home environments" in every way possible before the child is removed.

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