Dragovits 4
Angelina Dragovits
Honors U.S. History 3
Mrs. Snavely
Modern Day Muckraker & Progressive Essay
25 September 2018
Angelina Dragovits
Honors U.S. History 3
Mrs. Snavely
25 September 2018
Modern Day Muckraker & Progressive Essay
World hunger is the plague that has never faltered, continuously-and ironically-consuming the lives of millions of innocent people every year. Many people have a preconceived notion that, due to the United States’ relative economic stance in the world, food insecurity is not an issue close to home. This, however, is far from true. According to the organization, WhyHunger*, “41.2 million Americans are food insecure…12.9 Million children in the US are food insecure…15.6 million U.S. households suffering from food insecurity…6.1 million U.S. households suffer from severe food insecurity…families suffering from hunger and poverty live in areas where fresh, unprocessed, healthy food is not available or is expensive.” Why should one person be malnourished, while another person is overstuffed? The answer is, they shouldn’t be. Solutions can be found in sacrifice; this solution could lead to a positive shift in not only hunger, but also obesity/related health issues, deforestation/atmospheric concerns, and animal rights.
So, what is this solution? Well, it is simple. People need to eat more plant-based diets. According to research from Cornell University, 800 million people could be fed with the grain that livestock eat. There are 325.7 million people in the United States, as of 2017. Now, obviously the primary issue in the United States is more economically correlated, but due to the mass availability and cheaper farming of plant based foods, nutritious diets could be provided to more people for cheaper, based on supply and demand. A large issue in today’s America includes obesity, which correlates to LDL cholesterol, blood pressure, and overall longevity. According to studies by Harvard University, having a plant-based diet reduces the risk of chronic diseases by reducing LDL, lowering blood pressure, and providing a lower BMI. This is all according...
