About 21 percent of U.S. children live below poverty line in 2010.
Throughout 2010, about 21 percent of children in the United States will be living below the poverty line, the highest rate in over 20 years, according to a new study.
The study that concentrated on analysis of well-being in children was funded by the private philanthropy Foundation for Child Development. It found that families’ economic well-being has had a sharp decline to levels that are similar to those in 1975.
"Virtually all of that progress is wiped out through job losses, through declines in real income, and other aspects of family economic well-being," Kenneth Land, project coordinator and professor of sociology and demography at Duke University told CNN. “There are lots of kids out there whose quality of life has already and will decline as a result of the impact of this recession.”
The Child and Youth Well-Being Index Project at Duke bases its predictions on 28 indicators that include economic well-being, social relationships, community engagement, educational attainment and health.
The study estimates that almost 15.6 million children will be living in poverty this year, but authors say the number will slowly begin to decrease.
In 2010 alone, up to 500,000 children may be homeless, according to the report. Children living in homes where neither parent has secure employment will jump to around 20 million this year, spiking 4 percent since 2006.
The problem of not having access to nutritious food is also up, leaving around 750,000 children to live in food-insecure households, the report said. Since healthy foods can be expensive, parents may opt for processed or fast foods that are cheaper and more available, which could cause an uptick in obesity in families with limited budgets.
Good news in the report says that children’s health insurance coverage will not fall significantly, due to publicly financed health care programs. Around 90 percent of children will have some sort of health insurance, according to the report.
Here's what's being said about the study:
»CNN: Report: Children's quality of life on the decline
»Education Week: Report: Tough Times Ahead for Children of the Great Recession
»USA Today: More than 1 in 5 kids live in poverty
Do you believe national trend echoes in CNY? Leave your comments below.