A Review of Meal Skipping and Famine

Generally speaking, the most common human cause of famine is warfare. The second most common is entitlement failure. The third is a combination of both. There are some other factors that contribute to famine, such as skipping meals, letting food expire, or eating too little.

Warfare is the most common human cause

Throughout history, famines have devastated entire populations. Many families have lost their homes and their livelihoods. The lives of millions are at stake without urgent attention. Fortunately, the World Food Programme is working to prevent famines from happening in the future. The World Food Programme (WFP) is an international organization that provides food rations to about 15 billion people annually. The WFP has a deep-field presence and has the expertise to stop famine in its tracks.

Famines are caused by a variety of factors, including natural disasters, disease, insect infestations, civil disturbances, and political interference. Famines usually occur in areas with restricted access to food and humanitarian aid.

In the Thirty Years’ War, Europe suffered through a protracted conflict involving multiple parties, partisans, and a private army. It changed Europe’s social fabric. Warfare destroyed food supplies, uprooted families, and disrupted transportation and communication.

The Ethiopian famine of 1984-85 killed at least one million people. It is estimated that more than 350,000 people in the Tigray region are suffering from famine conditions.

Entitlement failure is the more proximate cause

During the second half of the twentieth century, Amartya Sen developed an approach to famine analysis that challenged the prevailing “FAD hypothesis.” This approach, known as the “Entitlement Approach,” is a framework for analyzing famines.

Sen’s framework provides a comprehensive logical model for investigating all famines. It incorporates an analysis of famines from two perspectives. One approach focuses on the supply side, and the other on the demand side.

Sen argued that the failure of food entitlements was the most important cause of famines. This hypothesis was first put forth in an article in the Journal of Development Studies. He defined the term as “the failure of a given entitlement set, resulting in a shortage of food and starvation.”

Sen’s theory was later extended to encompass the concept of outcome variation. His model explains asymmetries in entitlements by focusing on the entitlements of different socio-economic groups.

The entitlement strategy is an expressive and normative approach. It helps define the phenomenon and then determines the appropriate intervention strategy.

Skipping meals to make their food last longer

Various methods have been utilised to measure and quantify meal skipping. In this review, we explore the correlates of meal skipping, which is a broader topic than the usual food intake statistics. The review includes studies that were published in English, as well as those that did not. Moreover, our review utilised a rigorous search strategy, and adhered to the PRISMA protocol. This review aimed to identify the relevant findings, which will help inform public health and dietary interventions in the future.

There were 141 full-text articles identified for inclusion. The literature search was performed using the PRISMA protocol and the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Quality Criteria Checklist. The study design was either cross-sectional or longitudinal, and included case-control studies and randomised controlled trials. In addition, studies were rated for their methodological quality, which was measured using a risk of bias assessment.

The following are the top ten correlates of meal skipping that were found in the literature. These were selected based on their significance and suitability to the topic. In general, the correlations that were reported were of the small or medium size variety, which were generally limited to the breakfast and dinner meals. The one that drew the most attention was the time factor.

Controlling the effects

famine is a type of food shortage that causes widespread malnutrition. There are many reasons for famines, but a common underlying factor is widespread poverty.

Many African countries do not have enough food to feed their populations. This can lead to severe malnutrition, starvation, and death. In addition, disease can take advantage of a compromised immune system. Some examples include malaria, cholera, and measles.

In the modern era, famines have been prevented more frequently than in the past. This is most likely due to a combination of policy and politics. Governments need to shore up poor buying power, create employment relief programs, and provide direct relief.

Governments have often limited the movement of food between regions. This prevents the inflow of food to areas affected by famine. When the movement of food is limited, food prices increase. This is often accompanied by speculation.

As food prices rise, more food is available from foreign sources. In some cases, food is shipped from regions that have no famine to other regions that have famine.