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A BETTER UNDERSTANDING OF THE NUTRITIONAL ISSUES THAT THE HOMELESS FACE.
Nutritional Gaps
By Kearsten Miles
By Kearsten Miles
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Run for the Thirsty
Register for Phoenix's Run for the Thristy and help provide clean water to members of the local homeless population.
Dehydration's Effects
By Kearsten Miles
Access to clean drinking water is something many people take for granted, but for the homeless lack of water may become a legitimate concern. This issue becomes even more prominent in the summer, especially in urban desert climates such as Phoenix. The human body needs water. Lack of water interferes with the body’s ability to function on many different levels. Dehydration can range from mild to severe and the consequences go from bad to worse (Mayo Clinic ). Providing clean drinking water to the homeless is a challenge that many organizations have taken on (Phoenix Rescue Mission). There are many opportunities for members of the community to get involved. Charities raise awareness and funds to help combat this problem. Events such as Phoenix’s Run for the Thirsty (Water for Our World) have been created to provide direct aid to the homeless. With the high temperatures of summer approaching, now is the time to get involved and help prevent dehydration and its negative effects in the homeless population.
Sources: MayoClinic.org
Water for Our World
Phoenix Rescue Mission
Many homeless persons eat fewer meals per day, lack food more often, and are more likely to have inadequate diets and poorer nutritional status than housed U.S. populations. Yet many homeless people eligible for food stamps do not receive them. While public and private agencies provide nutritious food and meals for homeless persons, availability of the services to homeless persons is limited. Many homeless people lack appropriate health care, and certain nutrition-related health problems are prevalent among them. Compared with housed populations, alcoholism, anemia, and growth problems are more common among homeless persons, and pregnancy rates are higher.
The risks vary among homeless persons for malnutrition, nutrition-related health problems, drug and alcohol abuse, and mental illness. For example, among homeless persons, fewer heads of families than single adults are substance abusers, and mental illness varies in prevalence among single men, single women, and parents in homeless families. Homeless persons need improved access to food, nutrition, and health services. More nutrition education needs to be available to them and to service providers. Use of representative samples and validation of self-reported nutrition and health data will help future investigators to clarify the relationships between the characteristics of the homeless and their nutritional status.
Source: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1580272/