Childhood Hunger
According to the USDA, one in every five children does not know when or where their next meal will be. We can change this.
In the United States, millions of children face hunger every day, with one in eight unsure of when they will eat next. This silent crisis impacts their ability to learn, grow, and thrive, creating barriers to academic success and long-term well-being. Childhood hunger is not just a personal struggle—it's a community challenge that affects the future of our nation. Ensuring every child has consistent access to nutritious meals is essential to breaking the cycle of poverty, fostering equity, and giving every child the opportunity to succeed.
Childhood hunger remains a pressing issue in the United States, disproportionately affecting families living at or near poverty levels.
1 in 5 children in America face hunger every day
Nearly 18% of families with children struggled to put food on the table in 2023, according to the USDA.
9 out of 10 hungriest counties are in rural America
Rural communities bear the heaviest burden of hunger, despite making up less than two-thirds of U.S. counties.
9.7 million children live in poverty and hunger in the U.S.
Child poverty surged from 9.7% in 2022 to 12.4% in 2023, leaving 3 million more children living below the poverty line.
Every sixth home in rural America struggles with hunger
Rural families face higher rates of hunger than the national average, with limited access to resources.
The South faces a hidden hunger epidemic
Nearly 15% of households in the South struggle to put food on the table, the highest rate in the nation.
Summer Food Service Program
As SFSP sites and sponsors decline, we're reaching fewer eligible children over the summer months. Some states are seeing positive results with focused efforts on expanding their SFSP programs, but the majority are missing major portions of the child population who are food insecure.
Child and Adult Care Food Program
The number of sites and children reached with the Child and Adult Care Food Program and its Afterschool Supper and Afterschool Snack Programs are on the rise. This translates to a reduced meal gap after school, on weekends, and during school holidays, reducing food insecurity and the pressure on household food budgets for families with low incomes.
Childhood hunger continues to increase annually. With this challenge ahead, UHC embarks on a wide-scale effort to expand the reach and impact of child nutrition initiatives. The solutions are not complicated, but they do require an innovative approach to overcome the barriers community organizations encounter.
And they require a coalition – a collective effort – to maximize the impact of the child nutrition initiatives such as the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) and the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) that are pivotal in providing millions of young children with nutritious food when they are out of school. Join us.
Tackling Hunger is Investing in Our Future
Hunger and food insecurity don't just impact children in the moment—they leave lasting scars on their health, development, and well-being. Without reliable access to nutritious meals, children are more likely to face delayed physical and cognitive growth, struggle academically, and experience anxiety and depression. These challenges can ripple outward, affecting their ability to achieve future success and contributing to the cycle of poverty.
There are social and emotional setbacks when a child doesn't have enough to eat. The fight against hunger isn't only about meeting immediate needs, it's also about investing in the long-term health and prosperity of our communities. When children have the food they need to perform their best, their future is brighter and everyone benefits.
Hunger Affects Education
- •Students facing food insecurity are 1.5 times more likely to repeat a grade compared to their food-secure peers.
- •Hungry children show poorer academic outcomes and lower scores on standardized tests.
- •Food-insecure children have twice the risk of being suspended from school.
Hunger Affects Mental Health
- •Food-insecure children are at higher risk for depression, anxiety, and behavioral problems.
- •Chronic hunger can lead to difficulty concentrating and increased stress, affecting emotional well-being.
Hunger has Physical Health Effects
- •Children experiencing hunger are more likely to develop chronic illnesses, such as asthma and anemia.
- •Food insecurity can lead to obesity due to reliance on low-cost, high-calorie foods, increasing the risk of diabetes and heart disease later in life.
- •Children facing food insecurity often develop weakened immune systems, leading to more frequent illnesses and hospitalizations.
Hunger has Long-Term Impacts
- •Adults who experienced hunger as children are more likely to have lower earnings, poorer health outcomes, and fewer educational achievements.
- •The direct and indirect health-related cost of child hunger and food insecurity in the U.S. is estimated to be $160 billion annually.
There are social and emotional setbacks when a child doesn't have enough to eat. The fight against hunger isn't only about meeting immediate needs, it's also about investing in the long-term health and prosperity of our communities. When children have the food they need to perform their best, their future is brighter and everyone benefits. Increasing the impact and effectiveness of nutrition programs fills the meal gap for kids across the country through summer and after-school hours.