Health Unit urges action on poverty

from The Lindsay Post

A new report on child poverty is best summed up by the stark words of a Grade 4 student: "Poverty is hiding your feet so the teacher won't get cross when you don't have boots."

Local health officials say there is no tiptoeing around the fact that the inability of some families in this area to afford basic necessities is affecting the emotional wellbeing and overall health of children. That's the focus of the just-released Child Poverty: A Problem We Cannot Afford Report, produced by the Haliburton, Kawartha, Pine Ridge District Health Unit.

"Poverty is a vicious cycle that is only getting worse over time," says Aisha Malik, a Registered Dietitian with the HKPR District Health Unit. "This Report confirms what we already know: a lack of income for some local families is contributing to child poverty, hunger, illness, behavioural issues, and increased health care costs."

The Child Poverty Report is an enhancement of the Health Unit's previous Cost of Healthy Eating reports. These annual reports focused mainly on the rising costs of healthy eating in the area. The new Child Poverty Report is broader in scope, providing a statistical snapshot for 2007 on the challenges faced by some local residents to cover basic expenses such as nutritious food, shelter, utilities, telephone and other costs. Among the key findings:

Almost one in six Canadian children live in poverty. Locally, more than 4,000 families with children in the City of Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland County and Haliburton County and live in poverty. This lack of income may negatively affect the health, learning and social development of children, as Health Canada notes that income is the single most important factor that affects an individual's health.

The cost of healthy eating continues to rise. In 2007, a weekly Nutritious Food Basket for a local family of four with a teenager and younger child cost $135.96, which is an increase of almost $10 since 2003. This 'basket' includes 66 food items commonly purchased and recommended by Canada's Food Guide.

As the costs of essentials such as food, rent and heat/hydro increase, Ontario's social assistance rates and current $8-per-hour minimum wage have not kept pace. This leaves some low-income earners in the area with little or no money left at the end of the month.

Real-life comments from Grade 4 and 5 students in Ontario (Source: Campaign 2000) punctuate their feelings on the toll of poverty in their lives. "Poverty is pretending that you forgot your (school) lunch," says one student. Another relates: "Poverty is not getting to go on school trips."

Over the next month, the Health Unit will send the Report to local politicians, key decision-makers, social service organizations and others to encourage them to be informed, speak up and get involved in efforts to eliminate poverty in the City of Kawartha Lakes, Northumberland County and Haliburton County.

"We need to pay more than just lip service to poverty," says Malik. "We must take real steps to fix the problem."

To that end, she encourages local residents to learn about the extent of poverty in their communities, speak up for change with all levels of government, and get involved in community partnerships and agencies that work to address affordable housing, access to healthy food and other issues.

According to the Health Unit, local decision-makers can lobby both provincial and federal politicians to increase income support programs and take action to address child poverty. In particular, members of municipal councils in the area are being urged to forward specific resolutions to the Ontario government asking for immediate changes to the minimum wage, social assistance rates and disability support programs to reflect the real cost of living. Local leaders are also asked to keep affordable housing at the forefront of municipal planning.

The Child Poverty: A Problem We Cannot Afford Report and sample municipal resolutions are available by visiting the Health Unit web site at www.hkpr.on.ca, going under the 'What's New' section and following the links. For more details, call the Health Unit at (705) 324-3569.