When a food crisis is discussed, a food shortage is typically what comes to mind. But a different kind of crisis is emerging that is dangerous in its own way.
FeedingAmerica.org estimated 1 in 9 Americans didn’t have consistent access to food to sustain an active, healthy lifestyle in 2018. There are many overlapping issues leading to our food insecurity problems in this country like the lack of affordable housing, health issues, high medical bills, and low wages.
Historically, a national focus on hunger became necessary in the 1960s to bring light to the major increase in undernutrition after World War II. Then in the ’90s, our concentration shifted to the challenges many people were facing with food insecurity and low access to affordable foods. Today, there are mounting concerns about the triple threat of malnutrition affecting millions of people.
Hunger, insufficient nutrients, and obesity are becoming the new normal for many and are causing more negative health issues and diseases.
The fortification of foods began in the 1920s as a systemic approach to correcting well-known, identified nutrient deficiencies in the population. Iodine was added to salt to help the goiter health issue, vitamin D concentrate was added to milk, and over time other essential nutrients like thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, folic acid, and calcium were added to common foods like cereals using the same standards.
But these fortified foods are usually processed, so the amount of nutrition and health benefits your body gets isn’t as high. Getting the bulk of your nutrients from fresh sources, like fresh fruits, vegetables, and grains is the best way to maintain a healthy lifestyle but many people experiencing food insecurity aren’t getting the best dietary options available, increasing their chances of poor health.
It’s time to reassess our country’s food and nutrition crisis by turning our attention from “food insecurity” to “nutrition security.” We need to emphasize the importance of foods that provide best all purpose plant food with optimal nutrition to promote the well-being of their health and the prevention of disease.
It’s necessary to tackle food unavailability issues alongside the malnutrition issues of our society together. The current approach to our food insecurity needs doesn’t account for our modern challenges of diet-related diseases.
Prevegenics aims to change that providing all purpose vegetable fertilizer and the best fertilizer for vegetables, and by helping our farmers grow the healthiest, nutrient-packed foods for everyone’s better health.
