"Francis and Bibiana had a coffee farm of average size; however, they could not afford the agricultural necessary to maintain good harvests. They were dependent on cash income for buying food and could not purchase enough to feed their children" (page 54).
This quote grabbed my attention because it shows one of the main causes of child malnutrition and how realistic it can happen. I can relate to this because growing up on a farm you know how many expenses there are and its hard to make a living in a tough economy, so farmers in Mt. Kilimanjaro have even a tougher time and must rely on other sources for money. It fits into the overall message of my book because it shows the struggles that everyday citizens are challenged with and how easily it can happen to anyone and not just people without a job.
"He seemed to withdraw from us because carrying him only caused him pain; his body was swollen and tender from malnutrition"(page 24).
I was very intrigued by this quote because it was very shocking and the text leading up to this brought a lot of confusion. The baby was growing sick and starving but the mom didn't seem to concerned and was feeding him a bottle that was dirty. This quote fits into the purpose of "Hunger and Shame" because the strong message that is trying to be passed on is the lack of education that leads to malnutrition and sickness. Many families are faced with problems everyday that they don't know anything about and don't comprehend if what they are doing is wrong or right so many kids die of starvation and sickness.
"Increased demand for their labor in the fields makes it difficult to continue prolonged breastfeeding. In the household, they also have to work at various tasks and care for many other children. Most families cannot afford to lose a woman's labor for six months" (page 109).
This was a very interesting amount of information that was written and that's why I picked it. A children's starvation can come from lack of money but also from lack of breast milk due to women working in the fields. This fits into my book because it shows how in third world countries, women are more needed for labor rather than raising children. The message trying to be portrayed is that children are being neglected because families are trying to harvest their lands are make money for the children. However, the children aren't receiving the proper diet without breast milk and are suffering from malnutrition.
It is so sad that people are having to live like this. It makes me extremely thankful for everything I have!
ReplyDelete