The problems related to hunger are changing in many ways for many reasons. In the midst of these changes there is at least one important constant.
Hunger always brings with it significant costs to the individuals it touches and to all of society.
In a study of older patients admitted to a hospital, those who were malnourished at admission had actual hospital charges double that of those who were not malnourished. Perhaps the greatest cost of poor nutrition is the productivity that undernourished children might otherwise have contributed to society and to the well-being of their families. Children who participate in school lunch programs have superior nutritional intake compared to children who do not. Households using food stamps attain a significantly larger proportion of recommended daily allowances than do eligible non-participants. 1998 by the Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System doing business as the division of Cooperative Extension of the University of Wisconsin-Extension.