Essay revision

Running head: THE EFFECTS OF POVERTY ON AN INDIVIDUAL 1

THE EFFECTS OF POVERTY ON AN INDIVIDUAL DRAFT ESSAY 3

The Effects of Poverty on an Individual

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Poverty is a common term mentioned but it is a term that has detrimental effects on many individuals. Poverty is the state of being in deficiency of the essentials to maintain proper living. This is to mean that poverty does not entirely mean the lack of material wealth, but it also means the lack of other important things that promote quality life like a stable mind, causing people to live in a permanent state of dependability and poverty. Nowadays, there are many causes of poverty. One of the major causes is inequality where resources are not equally distributed to the most affected people, meaning that they cannot access any resource that can help them generate profits and other resources. Illiteracy is another cause of poverty affecting a big percentage of the population. Education helps people learn of ways to handle their economic constraint situation and overcome the situation. Ignorance makes it even worse when individuals have unstable mind sets because the poverty state becomes permanent. Not many people overcome this obstacle, but many succeed and learn from their mistakes.

Little or no access to job causes poverty because people require working either in the self-employment sector or in company employment for them to earn a living that they can use to overcome poverty. Poor health also causes poverty because medical bills drain all economic resources leaving family members in debts. Conflicts and wars cause damage and destruction of properties and infrastructure leading to low quality of life with little to no help from government agencies. Also, conflicts leave people homeless, with no access to basic needs leading to the state of poverty. Other factors include climate change, for instance drought affects economic stability of people, floods, hurricanes, earthquakes, and other natural disasters that sometimes leave even the richest in the society poor beyond imagination in terms of finances, physical, emotional, and psychological health.

The effects of poverty are detrimental to the person’s physical, mental, and emotional health and it is for this reason that many people do not have the courage and power to overcome their challenging state. One of the major effects is that poverty affects the overall wellness of the body leading to extreme low body weights and chronic ailments. The lack of resources makes it almost impossible to access quality meals that are critical to maintain the right body weight. Due to poor health people are exposed to infections and contagious diseases. Many people live in unhealthy conditions with no proper waste disposal strategies, no access to clean water, and medical facilities. For this reason, poverty increases the rate of ailment contraction and even causes death. Poverty is also known for making people homeless and exposed to all sorts of physical harm situations. Also, it causes many people to suffer from mental affecting challenges like stress, anxiety, and depression. Such conditions make people participate in extreme immoral behaviors like engaging in crime for survival, violence, or even contemplating suicide.