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“it is not surprising that families in the poorest quintile are three times more likely to live in housing without smoke detectors, twice as likely to be without a fire extinguisher, twice as likely to live in housing that requires major repairs, and twice as likely to have concerns about the overall safety and security of their dwellings” (17).

These are the living conditions that poor families encounter.

Economic and demographic forces are another problem adults in poverty face. The inequality of earnings among workers concludes in a larger proportion of the population in poverty. The problem is real earnings of workers has not increased by a whole lot, but inflation rates have increased. This means the purchasing power of the dollar is less as inflation rises. For the low income earners they must spend more of their income towards food, shelter, and clothing prior to rises of inflation.

Another problem is the education standards in the work force that workers of poor families confront. Many have minimal education levels which puts them at a disadvantage to be able to seek employment competitively. For those whom want to upgrade their education levels may not be able to because of the high costs of education. Without government funding towards schooling, many individuals cannot afford post-secondary levels of education. Without post-secondary education many poor adults cannot pursue higher paying jobs. They are left only with the option of settling for less skilled and hard labour jobs. This means there is less opportunity for an individual to be relieved from property. Governments should provide more job opportunites and a chance to improve education levels for poverty stricken adults.

All adult poverty conditions have a direct impact on children. Any child that lives with an adult that has to face any of those above problems is a child living in poverty. The children have no control of their surroundings they live in. And the adults have no control of the social surroundings they must survive in.

Generally speaking child poverty is associated with the negative aspects of life. Many problems and issues begin with poverty. A child in poverty encounters numerous difficulties, due to financial struggles. Poor health and hygiene is only a beginning of many obstacles the child will confront in life. The effects in childhood can last well into the adult years. Consequences children in poverty struggle with:

Not only do poor children poor children have access to fewer material goods than rich or middle-class children, but also they are more likely to experience poor health and to die during childhood. In school, they score lower on standardized tests and are more likely to be retained in grade and to drop out. Poor teens are more likely to have out-of-wedlock births and to experience violent crime. Finally, poor children are more likely to end up as poor adults. (Lewit et al. 1997 8)

In terms of health, poverty puts children at a great disadvantage. Children born under the conditions of poverty are more likely to be born pre-mature and have low birth weight or suffer from mortality. There is a much higher rate of infant mortality among the poor infants than in rich infants. There is a correlation between low birth weight and poor families. Many factors are associated with low birth weight such as maternal health during pregnancy and the use of cigarettes and alcohol. The most significant factor is low socio-economic status. With low incomes families are unable to nourish the fetus properly during the maternal stages. The life expectancy of children born into poverty is also much shorter, and the chances of having chronic health problems are much higher. “lack of money affects the quantity of food, and an inadequate diet prevents a child from properly developing physically, mentally and emotionally” (Baxter 1993 189)

Scholastic achievement is an obstacle for many impoverished children. Children living in poverty conditions do not do as well in school. They obtain low scores on school readiness. “Deprived material environment hinders a child’s ability to concentrate on learning” (Ross et al. 1996 13). Therefore, under these circumstances children have problems concentrating in school and results in poor grades at school. It is not made any easier at school with the curriculums and programs that do not facilitate the needs of the children. Programs such as the lunch program are needed to help provide children with a meal enabling them to concentrate and think better in school. Many of these impoverished children are more likely to drop out of school because their achievements are poor. This will eventually lead to poor employment prospects for the young adult.

Children are at the most vulnerable stage of socialization. Much of the socialization occurs outside of the home and possible in school. Many children face the problems of being teased they are poor and secluded from the main stream children at schools. Children begin to believe what others constantly tell them and live under the pressure of conforming with the other school kids. Simple items such as clothing and toys are status symbols in school. Often the impoverished children feel embarrassed because they do not have the clothing and the toys that all the other school kids have. Children are teased at school for wearing the same out-fit for a few days in a role. When a

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