Most studies on income inequality have focused on wage earnings inequality, but the usefulness of this approach is limited, some scholars say. What’s missing is the role of non-wage compensation, such as health insurance on the level and distribution of income.
In the United States, about 19% of children and adolescents are obese. Without any change in eating and lifestyle patterns, overweight children are more likely to grow up overweight, which contributes to the odds of their becoming diabetic later in life.
About one-third of elderly participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as Food Stamps, were diabetic in 2006. Despite the high and growing prevalence of diabetics among Food Stamp recipients, there is a lack of information on the effects of such in-kind transfers on recipients’ health.
Having accurate knowledge about financial products and services is widely perceived to be advantageous, especially for low-income communities. However, empirical evidence of this assertion has been relatively scarce.
Studies by sociologists and psychologists have often shown little correlation between self-reported levels of happiness and income. A 2011 World Bank study highlights the “paradox of unhappy growth,” whereby life expectations rise with incomes, reducing the happiness that increased prosperity may have otherwise brought about.
While the green revolution of the 1960s brought significant improvements to the agricultural productivity of Asia and Latin America, the revolution has not enjoyed the same success in sub-Saharan Africa due to a variety of factors. Additionally, large population growth and widespread migration to urban areas in many parts of the region have resulted in demand for food growing at a faster rate than local supply.
