The Effects of Poverty on Children

The Effects of Poverty on Children

Children are our future, yet day after day many young Einstein's and Edison's are lost to poverty. Every day students are dropping out of high school in order to find jobs to help their parents find a form of sustenance, one of the most essential of human needs. Children's psyches are demolished when their fellow classmates ridicule them because of their clothing. Poverty is everywhere and it affects us in more ways than we could have ever known.

Usually in poverty stricken families, food is hard to come by. Parents take on many low paying jobs in order to "put food on their tables". In the end, these jobs are usually not enough and the families are forced to eat food that is not balanced or is of one type. For example, a child that eats beans every night will not receive all the nutrients required. This malnutrition can cause lasting damage such as developmental delays. These delays do not include physical delays only. Childhood is when the brain does most of its "growing". The only way for the brain to do this is for the proper nutrients to be sent to it. Along with the lack of food, there is a lack of proper medical care. Not only are the poor not receiving the nutrients they need, they also cannot receive help to cure the illnesses they might pick up.

Stress can be one of the worst affects of poverty. It usually comes from the parents and ends up having an impact on the children. Most stress is caused by living from paycheck to paycheck, not knowing whether they will be able to pay the rent or buy groceries. While the parents do not mean to pass on their stress, it happens in the day to day living. Stress then becomes a great factor in the child's life. It can lead to low self esteem, outbursts of anger, and eventually depression. Sometimes, it can come from the child's school. The child might be ridiculed for its clothing because its parents can not afford new ones. The stress can also make them more violent. In some situations, the parent takes out his frustration on the child which in turn makes the child more likely to do the same to others.

Safety is a big issue when it comes to poverty. Lower income neighborhoods are much less safe than other neighborhoods. Children usually have nowhere safe to play and are found gallivanting in the streets. There are more kidnappings and deaths from car accidents in these