While poverty is a problem that is publicized and recognized, the detrimental effects that poverty has on an individual are not always widely acknowledged. Poverty is a state that alters the mind and body. Poverty is more than often a burden placed on individuals who do not have the advantages that average citizens have. It is extreme scarcity. For children it is the cards that they are dealt. As hard as some try, escaping poverty can be impossible. Escaping it feels like a miracle. For many of us, it’s hard to imagine living everyday with the uncertainty of being able to eat well or take a hot shower. There are others that live with this uncertainty every day. Millions of children face the horrors of living in poverty every day.

For many people the thought of poverty is linked to third world countries. Rarely does the thought of poverty go hand in hand with the United States. People in the united states are not ignorant to the fact that there are poorer cities than others, however, many people overlook or are unaware of the presence and severity of poverty in the United States. For example, Philadelphia is home to the deepest poverty in the Unites States. The city is home to 1.5 million people including myself, but, the Philadelphia that I call home is not the same Philadelphia that every other individual in the city calls home. Although we look at the same city, many of us, are looking through extremely different lenses.  This is not just to say for Philadelphia, this is a theme across every city in the United States. Poverty surrounds us and is much closer than we think. With that comes many unwelcome conditions. 

Poverty is an issue that realistically may never see a complete resolution, but, it is an issue that should be brought to further attention. There are many underlying human conditions that are linked to poverty. Children living in poverty are greatly impacted physically and mentally and left to deal with these effects throughout their lifetime. Poverty has a tremendous impact on childhood development, and unfortunately, growing up in poverty is almost always out of a child’s control. Poverty can greatly impact a child’s education and have major impacts that shape the rest of the way they live their lives. Poverty is also linked to an increase in crime and violence as well. The effects that poverty has on children are ones that alter their mental stability and well-being.  Compared to children in average income homes, children living in poverty are behind in growth, development, nutrition, and school. Their mental and physical health is at stake every day. 

According to the U.S. Census, the annual salary for a family of four at half the poverty line is $11,700 and 43.1 million Americans have been living in poverty since 2015. There are some in deeper poverty than others, however, this number accounts for all people on or below the poverty line in the United States. The average living expense for a family of four in the United States is $63,741 (Lubrano). This accounts for a modest lifestyle with all basic necessities covered. The salaries of those living in poverty simply cannot support a decent life and it is hard to imagine how people can even imagine doing so. Families living in poverty live with fear and uncertainty of whether they will have food, water, and electricity. This to many Americans is not a luxury, it is a basic aspect of daily life. For children, this is something that they cannot change in any way. Some feel that poverty is an outcome of laziness or failure to pursue an education. People feel that those living in poverty have brought it open themselves. This may be true for adults, but, children, in this case, have little to no control of living in poverty. Due to the circumstances they were born in, children face the effects of poverty without ever having the choice to combat the situation. These effects can last a lifetime. According to Dr. George Duncan, a professor of child development and education, one in five American children have lived in families that cannot surpass the poverty threshold. 15% of children living in poverty have lived this way for over ten years (Duncan 59). Until they approach adulthood themselves, children are stuck in a life of financial struggle with no way to change the circumstances. The health, well-being, and development of children is extremely dependent on the financial atmosphere that they grow up in.

The physical health of a child growing up in poverty is compromised compared to the child of an average income family. According to a 1988 National Health Survey, poor children were only two thirds as likely to be in excellent health as to children not living in poverty. A child’s physical health can be damaged in many different ways. Malnutrition is a key factor in the effects that poverty has on a child’s physical health. There have been many accounts of growth stunting in children living in poverty. Comparisons of height and weight at the same ages between children living in poverty and children of average income families show that poor children have a lower nutritional status (Duncan 62). That is, they may be greatly over or under the expected height and weight for their age. The differentials are large. Families lacking accessibility to adequate food cannot nearly meet federal dietary recommendations. Food insecurity leads to insufficient portion sizes, skipping meals, and opting for cheaper less nutritional meals. Cheaper food alternatives usually have high levels of processed sugars, trans-fat, saturated fat, refined grains, and all together have poor nutritional value. Healthy balanced diets full of nutrient rich foods are crucial in child growth and development, especially in the early years. Children’s diets build the foundation for their health, strength, and mental development. The reality is that many families living in poverty do not have the luxury of choice in what they eat, and often have to choose quantity over quality. This often leads to severe health issues such as obesity and poor functioning immune systems and metabolisms. This correlates to the issue of families living in poverty being unable to receive proper healthcare. A majority of the jobs that people living in poverty have do not come with insurance and health benefits. While there are numerous options for uninsured people to receive healthcare, this does not provide infinite and regular services as needed. The cost of healthcare without insurance is too high for families to afford. 

Physical health may be visible to the eye, whereas, a child’s mental health is within and substantially harder to heal and overcome. Growing up in poverty has a significant impact on a child’s mental health, and the mental effects of poverty can stay with a child much longer than effects of physical health. There are many emotional and behavioral outcomes tied to poverty. According to George Duncan, children living in poverty face many more emotional and behavioral problems than children in average families. Behavioral problems can include aggression, violence, and acting out. The NLSY, or the National Longitudinal Survey of Youth, has conducted many studies in the behaviors of children living in poverty. The NLSY found persisting poverty to be a predictor of many behavioral problems in children. Children living in long term poverty ranked three to seven percentile points higher on a behavioral problem index (NLSY). The studies show that the aggression in children derives from resentment and embarrassment of the way that they live, especially because it is out of their control. At a young age, children do not understand why they are living in a different atmosphere than their peers. Children are left confused and angry.  This aggression often leads to violence and acting out. Studies show that the increased acts of violence often stem from children seeking attention or from children feeling the need to prove that they are not beneath others (Duncan 67). 

Living in poverty can play an enormous role in a child’s emotional well-being. Children living in poverty often struggle with many emotional problems such as anxiety, depression, and social withdrawal. Home environment and parental interaction greatly impact he emotional health of a child. The stress on a parent of living in poverty has an impact on the ability of a parent to respond to the emotional needs of their children (McLeod 354). Studies show that children’s emotional needs are more likely to be overlooked when finances are a large stress on an adult (Mcleod 354). Like Children, parents and adults living in poverty are more prone to physical and mental health problems. This puts a very intense pressure on adults and the pressure is sometimes too much for parents to recognize when their children are in need. Naturally, children will have higher chances of developing depression, anxiety, or other mental illnesses when their problems are not dealt with properly and are not made a priority. 

The home environment of children living in poverty often leads to social withdrawal. Children feel that they are different from their peers and feel shame and embarrassment for being of a different socioeconomic status. It becomes an easier and natural reaction for children to socially isolate themselves. Young children do not fully understand why they live the way that they do and start to put blame on themselves for being different from other children, ultimately impacting a child’s self-esteem. While it is apparent that children growing up in poverty cannot make a change for themselves at a young age, they can in turn aim to change their lifestyle as they approach adulthood. Education is extremely important and crucial for a child to build a strong foundation for the rest of their life. Obtaining an education can serve as a child’s way of controlling their future. This becomes hard when the effects that poverty has on a child’s mental and physical health interfere with a child’s cognitive thinking and ability to succeed in school. Poverty directly effects a child’s ability to do well in school. According to numerous studies, children living in poverty are 1.3 times as likely to suffer from learning disabilities, leading to developmental delays (McLeod 357). According to the NLSY, children living in poverty scored 6 to 13 points lower on standardized tests than children coming from average income families. This point difference is enough to potentially place children in slower paced special education classes. Whether you are living in poverty or not, it comes down to the fact that children with physical and mental health problems have a greater struggle in school. Like said before, children living in poverty have greater physical and mental health diagnoses, thus showing the connection between these effects and success in school.  

Children living in poverty are also seven times more likely to drop out of school and not make it to high school graduation (McLeod 365). A college education is then impossible to achieve. This results in potentially working jobs that will most likely not be able to remove a person from living in poverty for the remainder of their life.  A common assumption in teens living in poverty is that a high school education is unnecessary due to the fact that they cannot afford a college education. They often feel that a college education is out of their reach, when in reality the opposite is true. There are many options for people who cannot afford a college education and many rewards to students who excel in school. The opportunities are there, but, many children growing up in poverty do not realize so. In this way, the cycle of living in poverty begins again. 

Aside from problems of cognitive thinking, many schools in poor communities face the struggle of lacking proper school supplies and equipment. These supplies may be as simple as notebooks and textbooks. So what happens when neither the school or the families can afford basic school supplies? The schools are put to an extreme disadvantage putting students at a disadvantage as well. With limited funding, many schools are surviving to the best of their ability. According to ancient philosopher Antoninus, “poverty is the mother of crime.” That is that poverty and crime go hand in hand. This often seems to be proven true as crime rates are highest in poor communities. Why exactly are crime rates higher in poor communities? This assumption can actually relate to many of the other effects that poverty brings upon a person. With poverty comes stress, depression, violence, and a lack of education. These are all things that can contribute to increasing crime rates. This does not account for every crime done, and this surely does not make any crime excusable or okay. 

 Many say that “desperate times call for desperate measures,” and sadly this can be true when living in poverty. Studies show that the stress of living in poverty drives some people to go to extreme measures to survive, whether this be stealing, selling drugs, or other crimes (Watson 49). According to a psychological study, certain crimes are committed at a higher rate when the person committing the crime feels that it is there last option to do so in order to make a living (Watson 52). This can absolutely not speak for all people living in poverty and it is unfair to say that all people living in poverty are more willing or susceptible to commit a crime. The fact is that crime is more prevalent in poor communities. A large problem and effect of the higher crime rates in poor communities is that children are then more surrounded by crime, drug use, and violence at younger ages than normal. Psychologists say that because children learn through observation, this poses an increased possibility for a higher rate of children to commit a crime in their lifetime (Watson 60). The chances are doubled when a child becomes a first-hand witness to crimes committed within the household and by family members (Watson 60). The environment that a child is raised in plays a substantial role in the person that they grow up to be. A child growing up around violence is much more likely to partake in violence than a child that has not witnessed regular violence in their lifetime, that is just the nature of how our brains work. 

Theories also state that education and crime have a connection, and that pursuing an education reduces crime rates (Lochner 5). Obtaining an education, in the end results, in a life with more opportunity and choice. According to psychological studies, obtaining an education initially provides a person more desire to succeed and further their career, which in result substantially decreases the probability for a person to commit a crime (Lochner 5). Theories and studies suggest that an education promotes a lifestyle with a much greater amount of resources to succeed and live a modest life than without an education (Lochner 6). In the United States, we have the luxury of education being extremely obtainable. The problem is then that the high school drop-out rate is much greater in poor communities leading to a life of much less opportunity and choice. 

There is no simple or overnight solution to Poverty. Possible solutions can become extremely costly and the United States simply does not have the means and budget to put a complete end to this problem. We as a country are not equipped to handle and support the lives of 43 million people on top of everything else, however, there are things that we can do to improve the childhood poverty problem in the United States. The united states should invest in child healthcare and education. There needs to be a stronger urge for children to stay in school and go on to college. This also means that college needs to be a more affordable and manageable option for children growing up in poverty.  The problem of deep poverty is one that should be talked about, but, the effects of deep poverty absolutely need to be talked about. Talking about the damage is how we can recognize the need for a change.  While the recognition of deep poverty is increasing in Philadelphia, there are many opportunities for everyday people to make a change. Whether it is donating old clothes, toys, and school supplies, or volunteering at a food shelter, each small effort is one step closer to helping our cities and people be the best that they can be under the circumstances that they are in. The change can start with you. 
