Poverty

===Health===
{{Main|Diseases of poverty|Disability and poverty}}
[[File:Expectancy of life CIA2016.svg|thumb|[[Life expectancy]], 2016|alt=|300px]]
One-third of deaths around the world—some 18 million people a year or 50,000 per day—are due to poverty-related causes. People living in developing nations, among them women and children, are over represented among the global poor and these effects of severe poverty.<ref>{{cite web|title=Human Development Report|url=http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/reports/264/hdr_2003_en_complete.pdf|website=United Nations Development Programme|access-date=15 April 2015|archive-date=15 April 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150415073824/http://hdr.undp.org/sites/default/files/reports/264/hdr_2003_en_complete.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Pogge|first=Thomas|title=Politics as Usual: What Lies Behind the Pro-Poor Rhetoric|year=2010|publisher=Polity Press|isbn=978-0-7456-3892-8|page=12|edition=1st |url=http://thomaspogge.com/books/ |access-date=17 January 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150131154332/http://thomaspogge.com/books/ |archive-date=31 January 2015}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.who.int/whr/1999 |title=The World Health Report, World Health Organization (See annex table 2) |website=Who.int |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-date=26 January 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110126211347/http://www.who.int/whr/1999/ }}</ref> Those living in poverty suffer disproportionately from hunger or even [[starvation]] and disease, as well as lower [[life expectancy]].<ref>{{cite journal |url=http://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0724/p01s01-wogi.html |title=Rising food prices curb aid to global poor |journal=Christian Science Monitor |date=24 July 2007 |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-date=23 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191023091853/https://www.csmonitor.com/2007/0724/p01s01-wogi.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last=Cano P.E. |first=Librado|title=Transformation of an individual family community nation and the world|year=2010|publisher=Trafford|isbn=978-1-4269-4766-7|page=100}}</ref> According to the [[World Health Organization]], [[hunger]] and [[malnutrition]] are the single gravest threats to the world's public health and malnutrition is by far the biggest contributor to [[child mortality]], present in half of all cases.<ref name=economist>{{cite news|url=http://www.economist.com/world/international/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10566634|title=The Starvelings|newspaper=The Economist|date=24 January 2008|access-date=28 May 2011|archive-date=31 December 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161231194031/http://www.economist.com/world/international/displaystory.cfm?story_id=10566634|url-status=live}}</ref>

Almost 90% of [[maternal death]]s during childbirth occur in Asia and sub-Saharan Africa, compared to less than 1% in the developed world.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/220376.stm|title=The causes of maternal death|work=BBC News|date=23 November 1998|access-date=27 August 2012|archive-date=3 January 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140103210749/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/220376.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> Those who live in poverty have also been shown to have a far greater likelihood of having or incurring a [[Disability and Poverty|disability]] within their lifetime.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://go.worldbank.org/JGF4Y3E5B0 |archive-url=http://webarchive.loc.gov/all/20120516090917/http://go.worldbank.org/JGF4Y3E5B0 |archive-date=16 May 2012 |title=Disability – Disability: Overview |website=Go.worldbank.org |date=28 March 2013 |access-date=26 July 2013 }}</ref> [[Infectious diseases]] such as [[malaria]] and [[tuberculosis]] can perpetuate poverty by diverting health and economic resources from investment and productivity; malaria decreases GDP growth by up to 1.3% in some [[Developing country|developing nations]] and AIDS decreases African growth by 0.3–1.5% annually.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.globalpolicy.org/component/content/article/211/44385.html |title=Economic costs of AIDS |website=Globalpolicy.org |date=23 July 2003 |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-date=23 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100323063859/http://www.globalpolicy.org/component/content/article/211/44385.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |title=The economic and social burden of malaria |journal=Nature |volume=415 |issue=6872 |pages=680–685 |date=3 September 2010 |doi=10.1038/415680a |pmid=11832956 |last1=Sachs |first1=Jeffrey |last2=Malaney |first2=Pia |s2cid=618837 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url = http://www.wpro.who.int/media_centre/press_releases/pr_20020916.htm |title=Poverty Issues Dominate WHO Regional Meeting |publisher=Wpro.who.int |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20110403044412/http://www.wpro.who.int/media_centre/press_releases/pr_20020916.htm |archive-date=3 April 2011 }}</ref>

Studies have shown that poverty impedes cognitive function although some of these findings could not be replicated in follow-up studies.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=O'Donnell |first1=Michael |title=Empirical audit and review and an assessment of evidentiary value in research on the psychological consequences of scarcity |journal=Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America |date=November 2, 2021 |volume=118 |issue=44 |pages=e2103313118 |doi=10.1073/pnas.2103313118 |pmid=34711679 |pmc=8612349 |bibcode=2021PNAS..11803313O |doi-access=free }}</ref> One hypothesised mechanism is that financial worries put a severe burden on one's mental resources so that they are no longer fully available for solving complicated problems. The reduced capability for problem solving can lead to suboptimal decisions and further perpetuate poverty.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Mani |first1=Anandi |last2=Mullainathan |first2=Sendhil |last3=Shafir |first3=Eldar |last4=Zhao |first4=Jiaying |title=Poverty Impedes Cognitive Function |doi=10.1126/science.1238041 |journal=[[Science (journal)|Science]] |volume=341 |issue=6149 |pages=976–980 |year=2013 |pmid=23990553 |url = http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/economics/staff/academic/mani/mani_science_976.full.pdf |access-date=1 November 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131028200906/http://www2.warwick.ac.uk/fac/soc/economics/staff/academic/mani/mani_science_976.full.pdf |archive-date=28 October 2013 |citeseerx=10.1.1.398.6303 |bibcode=2013Sci...341..976M |s2cid=1684186 }}</ref> Many other pathways from poverty to compromised cognitive capacities have been noted, from poor nutrition and environmental toxins to the effects of stress on parenting behavior, all of which lead to suboptimal psychological development.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Black |first1=Maureen M |last2=Walker |first2=Susan P |last3=Fernald |first3=Lia C |last4=Andersen |first4=Christopher T |last5=DiGirolamo |first5=Ann M |last6=Lu |first6=Chunling |last7=Grantham-McGregor |first7=Sally |title=Early childhood development coming of age: science through the life course |journal=The Lancet |date=7 January 2017 |volume=389 |issue=10064 |pages=77–90 |doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31389-7 |pmid=27717614 |pmc=5884058 |url=}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Britto |first1=Pia R |last2=Lye |first2=Stephen J |last3=Proulx |first3=Kerrie |last4=Yousafzai |first4=Aisha K |last5=Matthews |first5=Stephen G |last6=Vaivada |first6=Tyler |last7=Bhutta |first7=Zulfiqar A |title=Nurturing care: promoting early child development |journal=The Lancet |date=7 January 2017 |volume=389 |issue=10064 |pages=91–102 |doi=10.1016/S0140-6736(16)31390-3 |pmid=27717615 |s2cid=39094476 |url=https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(16)31390-3/abstract?code=lancet-site |access-date=7 June 2018 |archive-date=24 July 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210724225957/https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(16)31390-3/fulltext |url-status=live }}</ref> Neuroscientists have documented the impact of poverty on brain structure and function throughout the lifespan.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Farah |first=Martha J. |title=The neuroscience of socioeconomic status: Correlates, causes and consequences |journal=Neuron |date=27 September 2017 |volume=96 |issue=1 |pages=56–71 |doi=10.1016/j.neuron.2017.08.034 |pmid=28957676 |doi-access=free }}</ref>

Infectious diseases continue to blight the lives of the poor across the world. 36.8 million people are living with HIV/AIDS, with 954,492 deaths in 2017.<ref>{{cite web |url = https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/deaths-and-new-cases-of-hiv |title = Prevalence, new cases and deaths from HIV/AIDS |website = Our World in Data |access-date = 27 April 2020 |archive-date = 20 April 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200420210657/https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/deaths-and-new-cases-of-hiv |url-status = live }}</ref>

Poor people often are more prone to severe diseases due to the lack of health care, and due to living in non-optimal conditions. Among the poor, girls tend to suffer even more due to gender discrimination. Economic stability is paramount in a poor household; otherwise they go in an endless loop of negative income trying to treat diseases. Often when a person in a poor household falls ill it is up to the family members to take care of them due to limited access to health care and lack of health insurance. The household members often have to give up their income or stop seeking further education to tend to the sick member. There is a greater [[opportunity cost]] imposed on the poor to tend to someone compared to someone with better financial stability.<ref>{{cite book |author=OECD/WHO |title=Poverty and Health (DAC Guidelines and Reference Series) |year=2003 |publisher=OECD |isbn=978-92-64-10020-6 |location=Paris |oclc=55519605 |issn=1990-0988 |doi=10.1787/9789264100206-en}}</ref> Increased access to healthcare and improved health outcomes help prevent individuals from falling into poverty due to medical expenses.<ref name=Blumenthal/><ref name=Dastidar/>

==== Hunger ====
[[File:Hunger Map 2020 World Food Programme.svg|thumb|Percentage of population suffering from hunger, [[World Food Programme]], 2020|alt=|300px]]
{{Main|Hunger}}
{{See also|Malnutrition}}

It is estimated that 1.02 billion people go to bed hungry every night.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/20568/icode/|title=1.02 billion people hungry|website=fao.org|date=19 June 2009|access-date=21 June 2011|archive-date=17 November 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121117211313/http://www.fao.org/news/story/en/item/20568/icode/|url-status=live}}</ref> According to the [[Global Hunger Index]], Sub-Saharan Africa had the highest child malnutrition rate of the world's regions over the 2001–2006 period.<ref name="ghi2008">{{cite web |url = http://www.ifpri.org/publication/challenge-hunger-2008-global-hunger-index |title = 2008 Global Hunger Index Key Findings & Facts |year = 2008 |access-date = 20 September 2010 |archive-date = 19 October 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171019143346/http://www.ifpri.org/publication/challenge-hunger-2008-global-hunger-index |url-status = live }}</ref>

Poor people spend a [[Engel's law|greater portion of their budgets]] on food than wealthy people and, as a result, they can be particularly vulnerable to increases in [[food prices]]. For example, in late 2007, increases in the price of grains<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/7284196.stm |title=The cost of food: Facts and figures |work=BBC News |date=16 October 2008 |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-date=20 January 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090120025945/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/7284196.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> led to [[2007–2008 world food price crisis|food riots]] in some countries.<ref>{{cite news |first=Jonathan |last=Watts |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/dec/04/china.business |title=Riots and hunger feared as demand for grain sends food costs soaring |work=The Guardian |location=Beijing |date=4 December 2007 |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-date=1 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130901074034/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2007/dec/04/china.business |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article3500975.ece |title=Already we have riots, hoarding, panic: the sign of things to come? |work=The Times |location=London |date=7 March 2008 |access-date=21 June 2011 |first=Carl |last=Mortished |archive-date=14 August 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110814134028/http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article3500975.ece |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Julian |last=Borger |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2008/feb/26/food.unitednations |title=Feed the world? We are fighting a losing battle, UN admits |work=The Guardian |location=London |date=26 February 2008 |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-date=25 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161225150554/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2008/feb/26/food.unitednations |url-status=live }}</ref> Threats to the supply of food may also be caused by drought and the [[Water security|water crisis]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/42387/story.htm |title=Vanishing Himalayan Glaciers Threaten a Billion |website=Planetark.com |date=5 June 2007 |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-date=29 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160429073719/http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/42387/story.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Intensive farming]] often leads to a vicious cycle of exhaustion of [[erosion|soil fertility]] and decline of [[agricultural yields]].<ref>''Exploitation and Over-exploitation in Societies Past and Present'', Brigitta Benzing, Bernd Herrmann</ref> Approximately 40% of the world's [[agricultural land]] is seriously degraded.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.earth-policy.org/Updates/2006/Update61.htm |title=The Earth Is Shrinking: Advancing Deserts and Rising Seas Squeezing Civilization |publisher=Earth-policy.org |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090810034949/http://www.earth-policy.org/Updates/2006/Update61.htm |archive-date=10 August 2009 }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |first=Ian |last=Sample |url=https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2007/aug/31/climatechange.food |title=Global food crisis looms as climate change and population growth strip fertile land |work=The Guardian |location=London |date=31 August 2007 |access-date=24 October 2010 |archive-date=29 April 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160429094959/https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2007/aug/31/climatechange.food |url-status=live }}</ref> Goal 2 of the [[Sustainable Development Goals]] is the elimination of hunger and undernutrition by 2030.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/hunger/ |title=Goal 2: Zero Hunger |last=Martin |website=United Nations Sustainable Development |language=en-US |access-date=25 April 2019 |archive-date=10 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191210035826/https://www.un.org/sustainabledevelopment/hunger/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Mental health ====

[[File:Venezuelan eating from garbage.jpg|upright=1.15|thumb|right|A Venezuelan eating from garbage during the [[crisis in Bolivarian Venezuela]]]]

A psychological study has been conducted by four scientists during inaugural Convention of Psychological Science. The results find that people who thrive with financial stability or fall under low socioeconomic status (SES) tend to perform worse cognitively due to external pressure imposed upon them. The research found that stressors such as low income, inadequate health care, discrimination, and exposure to criminal activities all [[Causes of mental disorders#Poverty|contribute to mental disorders]]. This study also found that children exposed to poverty-stricken environments have slower cognitive thinking.<ref>{{cite journal|last=Sleek|first=Scott|date=31 August 2015|title=How Poverty Affects the Brain and Behavior|url=https://www.psychologicalscience.org/observer/how-poverty-affects-the-brain-and-behavior|journal=APS Observer|language=en-US|volume=28|issue=7|access-date=4 December 2019|archive-date=4 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191204034250/https://www.psychologicalscience.org/observer/how-poverty-affects-the-brain-and-behavior|url-status=live}}</ref> It is seen that children perform better under the care of their parents and that children tend to adopt speaking language at a younger age. Since being in poverty from childhood is more harmful than it is for an adult, it is seen that children in poor households tend to fall behind in certain cognitive abilities compared to other average families.<ref>{{Cite journal|last1=Farah|first1=Martha J.|last2=Betancourt|first2=Laura|last3=Shera|first3=David M.|last4=Savage|first4=Jessica H.|last5=Giannetta|first5=Joan M.|last6=Brodsky|first6=Nancy L.|last7=Malmud|first7=Elsa K.|last8=Hurt|first8=Hallam|date=September 2008|title=Environmental stimulation, parental nurturance and cognitive development in humans|journal=Developmental Science|language=en|volume=11|issue=5|pages=793–801|doi=10.1111/j.1467-7687.2008.00688.x|pmid=18810850}}</ref>

For a child to grow up emotionally healthy, the children under three need "A strong, reliable primary caregiver who provides consistent and unconditional love, guidance, and support. Safe, predictable, stable environments. Ten to 20 hours each week of harmonious, reciprocal interactions. This process, known as attunement, is most crucial during the first 6–24 months of infants' lives and helps them develop a wider range of healthy emotions, including gratitude, forgiveness, and empathy. Enrichment through personalized, increasingly complex activities".{{citation needed|date=April 2021}} In one survey, 67% of children from disadvantaged [[inner city|inner cities]] said they had witnessed a serious assault, and 33% reported witnessing a homicide.<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Atkins | first1 = M.S. | last2 = McKay | first2 = M. | last3 = Talbott | first3 = E. | last4 = Arvantis | first4 = P. | year = 1996 | title = DSM-IV diagnosis of conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder: Implications and guidelines for school mental health teams | journal = School Psychology Review | volume = 25 | issue = 3 | pages = 274–283 | doi = 10.1080/02796015.1996.12085817 }} Citing: {{cite journal | last1 = Bell | first1 = C.C. | last2 = Jenkins | first2 = E.J. | year = 1991 | title = Traumatic stress and children | journal = Journal of Health Care for the Poor and Underserved | volume = 2 | issue = 1| pages = 175–185 | doi=10.1353/hpu.2010.0089| pmid = 1685908 | s2cid = 28660040 }}</ref> 51% of fifth graders from [[New Orleans]] (median income for a household: $27,133) have been found to be victims of violence, compared to 32% in Washington, DC (mean income for a household: $40,127).<ref>{{cite journal | last1 = Atkins | first1 = M.S. | last2 = McKay | first2 = M. | last3 = Talbott | first3 = E. | last4 = Arvantis | first4 = P. | year = 1996 | title = DSM-IV diagnosis of conduct disorder and oppositional defiant disorder: Implications and guidelines for school mental health teams | journal = School Psychology Review | volume = 25 | issue = 3 | pages = 274–283 | doi = 10.1080/02796015.1996.12085817 }} Citing: {{cite journal|author1-link=Joy Osofsky | last1 = Osofsky | first1 = J.D. | last2 = Wewers | first2 = S. | last3 = Harm | first3 = D.M. | last4 = Fick | first4 = A.C. | year = 1993 | title = Chronic community violence: What is happening to our children? | journal = Psychiatry | volume = 56 | issue = 1 | pages = 36–45 | pmid = 8488211 | doi = 10.1080/00332747.1993.11024619 }}; and, Richters, J.E., & Martinez, P. (1993).</ref> Studies have shown that poverty changes the personalities of children who live in it. The [[Great Smoky Mountains Study]] was a ten-year study that was able to demonstrate this. During the study, about one-quarter of the families saw a dramatic and unexpected increase in income. The study showed that among these children, instances of behavioral and emotional disorders decreased, and conscientiousness and agreeableness increased.<ref name="MyUser_The_Washington_Post_October_8_2015c">{{cite web|url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonkblog/wp/2015/10/08/the-remarkable-ways-a-little-money-can-change-a-childs-personality-for-life/|title = The remarkable thing that happens to poor kids when you give their parents a little money|newspaper = The Washington Post|access-date = 8 October 2015|archive-date = 9 October 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151009173154/http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/wonkblog/wp/2015/10/08/the-remarkable-ways-a-little-money-can-change-a-childs-personality-for-life/|url-status = live}}</ref>