Many developing countries suffer from poverty and malnutrition due to a variety of social, political, economic, and environmental affairs. Impoverish nations tend to lack resources required to ensure the wellbeing of citizens, putting everyone at risk of malnutrition. One of the four types of malnutrition affecting developing countries is secondary malnutrition, defined as “a condition or illness that prevents proper digestion or absorption” (Leathers & Fosters, 2009). Secondary malnutrition is influenced by poverty, lack of education, and environmental concerns that can lead to diarrhea and diseases; however, secondary malnutrition is preventable. First, countries monetary standings have …show more content…
Many developing countries do not educate people about the importance of sanitation and disease prevention. As a consequence, uneducated mothers take risks like removing their children from solid foods after being infected by diarrhea. This decision hurts children because they do not have enough energy to overcome the infection, so the diarrhea continues. Eventually, the mothers remove the children from liquid diets to stop the diarrhea, and the children become dehydrated and die (Leathers & Fosters, 2009). According to John Hobcraft, studies exhibit that teaching maternal education in developing countries can lessen child mortality by showing women how to utilize health services and better care for their children (Hobcraft, 1993). Education is extremely important for people in poor countries because many times women have to tend to their children without the assistance of a trained professional. So, giving women the opportunity to learn preventive methods of avoiding secondary malnutrition could save the lives of numerous …show more content…
Some developing countries do not have access to proper waste facilities, which can make people vulnerable to a variety of infectious diseases. According to Jamison, Breman and others (2006), people living in poverty face unsanitary conditions on a daily basis including: living in crowded, filthy areas, having little to no shelter, and consuming contaminated water sources. All of these factors increase the regularity of being affected by secondary malnutrition. This can be seen in regions like sub-Saharan Africa where people are suffering severely from secondary malnutrition because “42% of the population is without improved water [and] 64% is without improved sanitation” (Montgomery & Elimelech, 2007). Without improving sanitation in regions with issues similar to sub-Saharan Africa, transmitting infectious diseases may be as simple as drinking out of a contaminated