Poor children in rich countries is a sure sign of dysfunction
Child poverty undermines early life brain development that is critical for lifelong health and well-being
There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way it treats its children — Nelson Mandela
It’s taken me soooo long to get this post together because I feel so passionately about the subject and I want that to come through. I hope it does. I don’t feel passionately only because I happen to like spending time with kids but also because kids are special and they are only special for a short period of time. Once development is complete, yes, we still grow and change, but not like we do when we are kids. Early life from conception to 5 years of age is incredibly important in terms of brain development. The results of that brain development last a lifetime for better or worse.
Some of our most important brain regions develop during the first 5 years of life with much of this development beginning during the prenatal period. This includes higher-level functioning such as emotional control, our ability to plan and execute that plan, think abstractly about a subject, control our impulses, and interact appropriately with others. Given the importance of those behaviours, you’d think that every society on earth would value this time period in a person’s life, but that isn’t the case.
We can consider early life as a foundation. Anybody involved in construction will confirm that a solid foundation is critical for the structure that is built on top of it. There is no point installing high-end fixtures and expensive flooring when you haven’t spent the effort to ensure that the foundation is solid and won’t crumble. As a society, we should be spending more time, more money, more effort on early life than any other time of life. Support for the idea that putting resources into early life would be a benefical societal goal has been around for years. The American economist and Nobel laureate, James Heckman (Heckman - the economics of human potential) demonstrated the higher rate of return in human capital with investment in preschool programs versus investment in programs at any other time in life.
While his conclusion (in orange on the figure above) is from a purely economic standpoint, it aligns with myriads of neurobiological studies that demonstrate the importance of investing in early life for lifelong health and well-being. I will write more about this topic including more in depth analysis of Heckman’s influential work in the next few months.
So, knowing all that we do about the importance of early life, and living in a time of relative prosperity - at least for most of the western world - it’s deplorable to realize that 1 in 5 children, on average, across high income and upper middle income countries in the European Union (EU) and Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) live in poverty.
According to Unicef (data from 2019-2021; Unicenti Report Card18), “more than 69 million children live in poverty in some of the world’s richest countries.”.
In a time of general prosperity, more than 69 million children live in poverty in some of the world’s richest countries.
Poverty is most often defined by income. But for most children, poverty is about more than just money. It is about growing up in a home without enough heat or nutritious food. Poverty means no new clothes, no telephone and no money for a birthday celebration.
These deprivations have consequences that can last a lifetime. Research shows that children in poor families are less likely to complete a good education.1 In some countries, the research indicates that life is eight to nine years shorter for a child born in a poor area than a child born in wealthy area.
Ending child poverty and its consequences is a matter of basic rights and justice.
The figure below shows the child income poverty rate (an average of data from 2019–2021). (Not every bar is labeled but the original figure allows you to see all of the countries)
Out of the 40 countries that the Unicef reported on, Canada (my present country) placed 19th, the UK (my birth country) placed 28th, and the US placed an astounding 35th. This amounts to almost a third of children in the US living in poverty in 2021. This should be so embarrassing that politicians can’t leave their mansions.
Incredibly, within this EU/OECD group of countries, the more affluent a nation is, the more likely they are to have higher child poverty. I haven’t had a chance to look into this in great detail, but my first thought about this relationship is that the governments of higher income countries, such as the US, are more disconnected with society and the people they are supposed to represent, leading to an erosion of social programs that would counter child poverty.
A quote from the Unicef report refers directly to the effects on children that lack housing, adequate sustenance, education, sanitation:
These deprivations have consequences that can last a lifetime. Research shows that children in poor families are less likely to complete a good education. In some countries, the research indicates that life is eight to nine years shorter for a child born in a poor area than a child born in wealthy area.
I recently wrote about the fact that being poor reduces life expectancy and overall well-being (Being Poor Can Kill You). That’s the really important thing about child poverty - poor children become sick adults that have a good chance of being poor as well and the cycle continues. The underlying biological mechanisms of non-communicable chronic diseases being passed from generation to generation (Stop the spread of chronic disease) are no different than those that underlie how living in poverty begets living in poverty.
In 1989 the Canadian House of Commons unanimously voted to end child poverty by the year 2000. The governments (run by varying political parties) have had thirty-five years and they have not even come close to achieving this. It’s shameful and I hate to be pessimistic, but I don’t see it changing any time soon.
I will end on a more positive note. When I found the poem below it really resonated with me. I believe strongly that as individuals, no matter our socioeconomic status, we can do things that matter for our kids, and this poem echoes that sentiment. Thanks for reading.
If I Had My Children to Raise Over Again
By Diane Loomans
If I had my children to raise all over again,
I’d finger paint more, and point the finger less,
I’d do less correcting, and more connecting.
I’d take my eyes off my watch, and watch more with my eyes.
I would care to know less, and know to care more.
I’d take more hikes and fly more kites.
I’d stop playing serious, and seriously play.
I’d run through more fields, and gaze at more stars.
I’d do more hugging and less tugging.
I would be firm less often, and affirm much more.
I’d build self-esteem first, and the house later.
I’d teach less about the love of power,
And more about the power of love.
Hi Tara,
I found the graph shocking. I live in Canada and have seen the rise in homelessness and poverty, and was amazed to see how many countries are worse off than we are.
How do we turn this NeoLiberal system around so that it serves all of us, and not just the rich?
Hi Tara Regarding my article which my followers anticipate (LOL) is called WAGING PEACE. I just do a brief generic quote my Nelson Mandela . But I have thought this through. I came to the conclusion of a possible correlation between child poverty and the educational system. So I went to Global Partnership for Education where they assign a number- EDUCATION RANK (WT20 2024
1. South Korea (I know from experience every child goes to public school and in the evenings private schools)
2.Denmark - complete university degree-all paid for by the country
3 Netherlands
6 Japan
7 Germany
8 Finland
9 Norway
12 UK
13 China
15 Sweden
16 France
19 Canada- that did surprise me
22 Russia
31 U.S.A.
36 Italy
37 Turkey
I just thought I would run that by you. I figured with Demark 1 or 2 because university is payed for. South Korea- like I say every kid goes to public school and private. And all they do is study. I took on private tutoring for young people- mostly teenagers, and they were so stressed out from studying, they just wanted to hang out with me. If it kept up I would have to inform the parents that -sometimes I lied, and said I had too many commitments.
Canada did surprise me. With the U.S. I figured bottom of the barrel esp. in Southern States and big Cities with the Projects. Anyway, I cannot say if this is a legitimate source or not. or what Global Partner
for ED. It is just that I thought a possible correlation between the two. Thought I'd pass that along Cheers Colin