Malnutrition in England

Food insecurity is a major problem.

Sustainable Development Goals in the UK follow up: Hunger, malnutrition and food insecurity in the UK

This was written by a Commons Select Committee in 2018.

publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm201719/cmselect/cmenvaud/1491/149105.htm

There are 28 million households in the UK and of those 2 million are classified as being in poverty. The vast majority of homes have cookers they can afford to use and enough money to provide their household with nutritious meals.

At the beginning of the period of inflation the internet and media were awash with recipes for inexpensive and nourishing dishes.

Until I see a breakdown of the malnutrition figures, so know which groups are most likely to be in danger of health problems rising from malnutrition, it is impossible to suggest any solutions.

Hetty58

Wow, there's an awful lot of victim blaming above - what else can we expect on GN? How come so many people have recently decided to be silly and not eat properly?

Couldn't agree with you more.

(sigh)

Glorianny

Whitewavemark2

Yes and checkups by the doctor with nurse in attendance and mum. Stripped to our knickers weighed, chest listened to, teeth checked, feet and hands checked.

Perhaps a compromise would be checks in areas of deprivation, of which there is quite a lot in all areas of the country.

I wouldn't be so quick to consider that it is deprived children who are the only ones suffering. Cases of rickets were first reported by dentists who recognised the unusual (and littled seen by medics) symptoms in the middle class and cared for children who had been carefully screened from the sun, since birth, by their protective parents. All children should be routinely checked.

Yes.
There have been cases of rickets in Australia in children of families which are not poor and care for their children - making sure they carry out the message of Slip-Slop-Slap.

Wow, there's an awful lot of victim blaming above - what else can we expect on GN? How come so many people have recently decided to be silly and not eat properly?

Calipso

I'm surprised that anyone is surprised.
Until the Government start to tackle the hugely complex issue of Ultra Highly Processed foods which play a huge role in malnutrition, it matters little how much money is poured into the NHS and the population in general will become more and more unwell. Their starting point needs to be WHY is there so much ill health and to work from there.

I agree. We keep hearing that good food is too expensive. Some is, of course, but there are plenty of nutritious food options that are cheaper than the UPFoods.
The trouble is that parents are either too busy or don’t have the cooking skills to prepare them.
I have heard that many poor families can’t afford to put the oven on.perhaps we should be donating air fryers, microwaves and slow cookers to the food banks.

True - I hovered as I typed that🙂

Yeah, I would def support all kids being checked regularly Glorianny

Whitewavemark2

Yes and checkups by the doctor with nurse in attendance and mum. Stripped to our knickers weighed, chest listened to, teeth checked, feet and hands checked.

Perhaps a compromise would be checks in areas of deprivation, of which there is quite a lot in all areas of the country.

I wouldn't be so quick to consider that it is deprived children who are the only ones suffering. Cases of rickets were first reported by dentists who recognised the unusual (and littled seen by medics) symptoms in the middle class and cared for children who had been carefully screened from the sun, since birth, by their protective parents. All children should be routinely checked.

M0nica

No one is discrediting these figures Maizie but equally we do not want to mount our high horses of outrage and complaint until we know the detail of the figures and their source so that we do not make fools of ourselves by prtotesting agaianst an outrage that is not quite what it says it is.

Agree 👍🏻

So many factors to take into account and junk food is def one of them.Parents who can’t cook so don’t try to, give their kids too many carbs and sugar and little or no veg or fruit.Drug addicts are on the up and they don’t bother much about food.
Mental health can be a reason as well.

Whitewavemark2

Of course the elephant in the room is the re- introduction of austerity which the government is hinting very heavily at.

It hasn't actually gone away, Wwmk2.

And Labour seem to be promising even more of it...

M0nica

No one is discrediting these figures Maizie but equally we do not want to mount our high horses of outrage and complaint until we know the detail of the figures and their source so that we do not make fools of ourselves by prtotesting agaianst an outrage that is not quite what it says it is.

Sorry, but you all leapt in with excuses without any context even asked for.

Do you, or anyone reading this thread, think that a doubling of admissions for malnutrition over 15 years, which, what a coincidence, covers tory austerity cuts, is anything to worry about?

Yes and checkups by the doctor with nurse in attendance and mum. Stripped to our knickers weighed, chest listened to, teeth checked, feet and hands checked.

Perhaps a compromise would be checks in areas of deprivation, of which there is quite a lot in all areas of the country.

It would also bring back the limitation of TB, which is apparently becoming more active and has links to Covid infection. Routine chest examination for children should become normal again.

I can remember going to the clinic with my mother way before I started school, coming home with that strong orange juice and cod liver oil and malt. That would have been in the late 1940s.

Of course the elephant in the room is the re- introduction of austerity which the government is hinting very heavily at.

Whitewavemark2

Glorianny

I think the whole issue of child health needs to be revisited and some of the measures which were brought in to improve things in the '40s and'50s need to be reinstated. So regular health checks for children up until their teens, including height, weight, dental and progress checks, probably once a year for all children up to age 5, with the provision of more regular checks if the child exhibits signs of problems, then every 3 years until 14 or 15.
The assumption was made that we had overcome these problems and children no longer needed close supervision. It seems obvious that this assumption was totally unfounded.

Yes absolutely.

Yes.

And more cases of child abuse, deliberate starvation might be picked up and acted upon too.

Glorianny

I think the whole issue of child health needs to be revisited and some of the measures which were brought in to improve things in the '40s and'50s need to be reinstated. So regular health checks for children up until their teens, including height, weight, dental and progress checks, probably once a year for all children up to age 5, with the provision of more regular checks if the child exhibits signs of problems, then every 3 years until 14 or 15.
The assumption was made that we had overcome these problems and children no longer needed close supervision. It seems obvious that this assumption was totally unfounded.

Yes absolutely.

I think the whole issue of child health needs to be revisited and some of the measures which were brought in to improve things in the '40s and'50s need to be reinstated. So regular health checks for children up until their teens, including height, weight, dental and progress checks, probably once a year for all children up to age 5, with the provision of more regular checks if the child exhibits signs of problems, then every 3 years until 14 or 15.
The assumption was made that we had overcome these problems and children no longer needed close supervision. It seems obvious that this assumption was totally unfounded.

nanna8

Malnutrition is estimated at between 10 and 30 % of the population in Australia which is very alarming. Food is now very expensive, particularly ‘good’ food as opposed to junk food which remains cheap and I am sure that is why people buy it- maccas is very cheap, for example. Even potatoes cost a fortune now.

Don't look to the farmer.

I believe the last I saw, potatoes were £210/t to the farmer. Do the math - how does that become "The retail price range in British pound sterling for potatoes is between GBP 2.41 and GBP 4.82 per kilogram"?

timetogo2016

Why doesn`t it come as a surprise,a lot of young parents cannot cook.
Some of my neighbours have take- a-ways 4/5 times a week.
And hand on heart,i have never smelt anything cooking from 8 neighbours homes.

So we judge the level,of malnutrition by the smells coming from a house😄😄😄😄

Why doesn`t it come as a surprise,a lot of young parents cannot cook.
Some of my neighbours have take- a-ways 4/5 times a week.
And hand on heart,i have never smelt anything cooking from 8 neighbours homes.

No one is discrediting these figures Maizie but equally we do not want to mount our high horses of outrage and complaint until we know the detail of the figures and their source so that we do not make fools of ourselves by prtotesting agaianst an outrage that is not quite what it says it is.

Callistemon21

^DH lost 3 stone during an 8 week stay in hospital^
The same thing happened with my MIL, she never really regained much weight, and DH lost 1.5 stones in hospital because he said the food was dreadful. He has regained most of it now.

My nearly 92 year old neighbour has been in hospital for 4 weeks after a fall.

He is used to good food at home, but is full of praise for the meals provided by the hospital.

Good choice, variety of options and portion sizes, the menus look balanced and appetising.

Heartening to hear of someone actually enjoying hospital food.