Abyan Ahmed, CARE’s Global Humanitarian Nutrition Advisor, was interviewed by TIME Magazine and discussed the physical and psychological impact of starvation in adults and children.
Below are a couple of quotes from the reporter’s conversation with Abyan Ahmed:
People experiencing starvation are often unable to concentrate and don’t have the energy to complete basic tasks, like getting out of bed or taking care of their children. “If a mother is malnourished, all those tasks become incredibly hard to do,” Ahmed says. “That leads to depression and mental-health issues, which also affect malnutrition—because if you have mental problems, you’re unable to look after yourself and eat properly, even if food is available.” Plus, she says, many women are overwhelmed and distressed by the sound of their children crying out of hunger.
To provide more context to the story, Ahmed also discussed how malnutrition can impact the cognitive development of children and their professional prospects later in life.
“Not only does it reduce their cognitive development, but malnutrition has been associated with poor educational attainment, with poor IQ scores, with a lack of income in later life, and not being able to keep jobs because of behavioral problems,” Ahmed says. “It sets the person off to this cycle of poverty, which then gives birth to more malnutrition in their families.”
You can access the full article here.