Food security issues are major concerns to both domestic and international institutions in charge of nutrition. The disparity in nutritional status between populations in poor countries as compared to those in richer ones is growing rapidly. As nutrition in poor countries such as Ethiopia deteriorates and its population faces the risk of undernutrition, the US has to tackle the issue of the widespread over-nutrition.
Nutrition is the study of the effects that food intake or lack of food has on the health and well-being of an individual. Global nutrition, on the other hand, can include exploration of nutritional status in different communities across the globe. Nutritional status of a given community and/or state can be different from that of others as a result of different social, cultural, economic, and even political factors. While the population in first-world countries has an adequate food supply and is thus nutritionally stable, their middle and lower-income counterparts experience difficulties in meeting the nutritional requirements (Asfaw, Wondaferash, Taha, & Dube, 2015). These challenges related to the nutritional requirements such as essential vitamins and minerals directly influence the productivity of a given population, leading to slower economic growth. Today, nutrition in poor countries is worsening as compared to first-world countries due to the persistent deterioration in global food security. This study focuses on highlighting the state of nutrition in the US as a first-world country vs. that of Ethiopia as a poor country. The research will also help to gain an understanding of the actual global effects of nutritional requirement deficiencies in human health.
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Nutrition in Ethiopia vs. the USA
Global statistics indicate clear demarcation between the nutritional status of rich countries and poor countries, such as Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Sierra Leone among others. While the population in the US is more prone to over-nutrition, the poor countries suffer mild and even extreme malnutrition during different times of the year. In the case of Ethiopia, according to the 2016 Ethiopia Demographic and Health Survey, 29 percent of Ethiopian women are malnourished and 44 percent of the children under the age of 5 suffer from chronic under-nutrition, having problems with both micronutrient and protein-caloric malnutrition (Central Statistical Agency (CSA) [Ethiopia] and ICF, 2018). This definitely retards growth in children and has other long-term effects on their development. Ethiopia reports many deaths in the cohort of children aged under five years old, which mainly results from under-nutrition (Asfaw et al., 2015). This is attributed to elongated droughts that interfere with domestic food production within the region. Studies indicate that children who are malnourished are physically, emotionally, and even intellectually less productive. They are also prone to very severe chronic conditions as well as mental and physical disabilities.
Apart from children, the women constitute one of the most affected population groups in terms of under-nutrition in developing countries. A woman's nutritional status influences the nutritional state of their children, including the health condition of their unborn babies. Data on women nutrition in Ethiopia indicate that about 27% of the country's women population in Ethiopia is underweight and malnourished with a BMI of less than 18.5 (Gillespie, Hodge, Yosef, & Pandya-Lorch, 2016). This same study established that only 4% of the Ethiopian women are overweight or obese with a BMI greater than 25.0. The high number of underweight women in Ethiopia is, therefore, a very important indicator of malnutrition that needs to be addressed urgently. Still related to nutrition, it was established that 27% of Ethiopian women were anemic: 17% mildly anemic, 9% moderately anemic, and 1% were severely anemic (Gillespie et al., 2016). These figures indicate a major problem related to the state health sector. The anemic cases were mainly affected by low intake of Iron, which is an essential dietary requirement that boosts the production of blood.
The US, unlike Ethiopia, suffers from the cases of over-nutrition and deficiency in vitamin D. Discussions on nutrition in the US thus focus mainly on the feeding habits of the population. Studies indicate that around 75% of American population do not consume enough fruits and vegetables as well as dairy products ( U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and U.S. Department of Agriculture, 2015). The majority of the United States population exceed the allowed amount of sugar, salt, and saturated fats consumption. The calorie intake is high compared to the calorie needs per individual. The country's population is mainly obese, giving a clear indication of a sedentary lifestyle accompanied by a high-calorie intake amongst its population. It is also established that more than 67% of adults and approximately 33% of all children in the US suffer from excess weight or obesity (Ogden, Carroll, Kit, & Flegal, 2014). There is a need to empower the United States population to make changes towards healthy eating patterns despite the political stability and food security that the country enjoys.
Case Studies
Ethiopia
A case study done in Ethiopia indicated that good governance and policy could create a momentum for improved nutrition. Severe cases of malnutrition also contribute to the country's under-five year children's motility by 11% percent according to the National Nutrition Programme June 2013-June 2015 report (Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, 2015). From this report, moderate malnutrition, on the other hand, brought about 40% of the under-five-year-old children experiencing stunted growth, wasting and underweight. Vitamin A deficiency emerged as a major public health concern in Ethiopia, since the study established a 1.7% national prevalence of Bitot's spots in children. The study revealed that 0.8% of the Ethiopian children had night blindness as well as 1.8% of the mothers. Nationally, 37.7% of the children had lower levels of serum retinol than required (Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, 2015). This was associated with the mono-crop grain farming practiced in the region, long weaning periods, chronic diseases, and eating foods low in vitamin A. According to Asfaw et al. (2015), poor hygiene as well as other health factors that lead to diarrheal diseases among the newborns and children under the age of five years contribute to deficiency of essential minerals and vitamins.
United States of America
Studies conducted by the National Health and Nutritional Surveys demonstrated that 1.5% of the population in the United States were anemic. Pregnant women, the aged people, premenopausal women, and Non-Hispanic blacks were found to be at greater risk of anemia. In men, the rates increased monotonically with age, while in women - bimodally peaking at age 40-49 to 80-85 years (Le, 2016). Anemia is considered to be a life-threatening issue and it therefore requires attention. Adults were found to be consuming low amounts vitamin D, E, A, C, and calcium. Le (2016) also stated that 13% of the children below 8 years exceeded the required levels of vitamin A, according to the WHO requirement. However, it has been established that most of the American population do not experience zinc deficiency. Only 10 percent of Americans aged 2 years old and above have zinc intakes below the required amounts on average (Le, 2016). A CDC study on vitamin D deficiency revealed that non-Hispanic blacks in America face the highest risk of vitamin D deficiency in spite of their greater bone density when compared to other ethnic groups (National Institutes of Health, 2018). Many American women have a deficiency in iodine as iodizing salt is not mandatory in the United States, and it is therefore required to supplement their iodine during pregnancy and while nursing by adding 150 micrograms of iodine to their normal diet (UNICEF, 2015). This UNICEF study also discovered that the United States requires folic acid supplements to be added to all enriched cereal grain products in attempts to curb the risk of neural tube defects in newborns.
Based on the abovementioned case studies, it is obvious that the United States and Ethiopia have a huge gap in terms of the nutritional status. While a section of the Ethiopian population faces the impact of under-feeding and unavailability of some vitamins and minerals, its counterpart has a secure supply of the food and necessary supplements. The US has a significantly lower number of people who are anemic as compared to Ethiopia. While American population faces the risk of obesity and related health conditions, the Ethiopian population faces the tough case of moderate and severe malnutrition. Nevertheless, a significant section of the US population faces the risk of vitamin D deficiency, which is not the case in Ethiopia and other countries around the equatorial region.
Numerous factors have contributed to the poor state of nutrition in the Ethiopian population as compared to the US. These factors can be described as instabilities in the country's social-demographic, environmental, reproductive, institutional, cultural, and political aspects.
The social-demographic factors can include the high population that cannot be sustained by the per-capita-income, making families have insufficient funds to purchase enough food (Asfaw et al., 2015). Environmental factors include long droughts that destroy crops and make the country have less food supply and a surge in food prices. Institutional factors can include inadequate policies that have not been efficient in handling the issue of the poor nutrition of Ethiopian population over time similarly to other poor countries like Sierra Leone. The cultural aspects embrace the cultural practices that encourage families to rely on one type of food such as milk and blood for the nomadic Ethiopian tribes (Asfaw et al., 2015). During the period of droughts, their cattle die, which renders the communities foodless. The policies of the country affect its food security. It is apparent that Ethiopia's political instability in the recent past has further deteriorated the population's nutritional status. This is because such factors disrupt the economic growth as people have lowered productivity. It is thus true that while the US population is suffering from over-feeding, except for vitamin D deficiencies in some Americans due to their ethnic backgrounds as well as the low synthesizing ability of their skin, Ethiopia faces a poor state of nutrition. This trend is particularly common between rich and poor countries, when an attempt of a global comparison is made on the example of the nutritional status.
In conclusion, there are huge disparities in nutrition between rich and poor countries. Agencies that focus on global nutrition such as the World Food Program and FAO rely on such disparities to keep profiles of each state, which helps in the initiation of programs that educate and fund states to help them enter a healthy and productive global world. The case of the US and Ethiopia presents two extremes, which reflects the actual picture of global nutrition. There is thus the urgent need to bridge the gap by targeting policy-making towards improving the nutritional status in poor countries. Minimal requirements of the basic vitamins and minerals should be made available to the populations in poor countries like Ethiopia. It can be achieved through charities and other fund-raising programs. The US should have foods rich in vitamin D to tackle the increasing rate of the vitamin deficiency. Once implemented globally, these approaches will improve the state of global nutrition.
