Human Nutritional Needs

Human nutritional needs are not always met

• Advancements in agricultural methods are believed to have greatly improved 10,000 years ago due to the agri. revolution
  • However, food distribution still is lacking
• Undernutrition
  • Condition in which not enough calories are ingested to maintain health
  • Chronic Hunger
  • Avg person needs ~2000 kcal per day
    • Long term food deficit of only 100-400 kcal = bad
    • Can lead to improper brain development + lower IQ
• Malnourished
  • Having a diet that lacks the correct balance of proteins, carbs, and vitamins.
  • Roughly 1/3rd of the world is malnourished
• Food Security
  • Condition in which people have access to sufficient, safe , and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs for an active and healthy life
  • Food insecurity
    • Opposite of food security (duh)
• Famine
  • Condition in which food insecurity is so extreme that large numbers of deaths occur in a given area over a short period of time
  • More than 5 deaths per day per 10,000 people due to lack of food
• Even when people have access to sufficient food, a deficit in just one essential vitamin is bad
  • Anemia
    • Deficiency of iron
    • However can be due to diseases like malaria, AIDS, etc
• Overnutrition
  • Ingestion of too many calories and a lack of balance of foods and nutrients
  • Type of malnutrition
• Top edible plant species
  • Corn
  • Rice
  • Wheat
• Meat
  • Livestock or poultry consumed as food

Undernutrition and malnutrition occur primarily b/c of poverty

• Primary reason for undernutrition and malnutrition
  • Poverty
    • Lack of resources that allows person to have food
  • Starvation is due to unequal distribution of food
• Other factors that cause under/malnutrition
  • Political and Economic factors
  • A lot of food in US is used to feed cattle or make ethanol (corn) rather than feed people

Modern Large Scale Farming Methods

Modern industrial farming methods have transformed agriculture

• Growing food production → more people → more food → more pepole
  • Positive feedback
• In 20th century, farming became more mechanized and the use of fossil fuel energy increased
  • Industrial Agriculture
    • Aka agribusinesses
    • Agriculture that applies the techniques of mechanization and standardization to the production of food.

The energy subsidy in agriculture