Consequences of Stress on Children's Development

Poverty affects children on a global level, not just children of the United States. As a young child, I was raised by my single grandpa. He by no means could afford to pay for me and my three siblings. He had to rely on his Social Security Income, and his retirement just to pay the rent. I remember him also having to spend all day in the local Welfare office to apply for food stamps for us. Although, we were at the low-income level, we still had food in the fridge and clean clothes. There are many things that I remember when I was a young child- like not having the cool or hip clothes that my friends had, or more than three pairs of shoes, but I had family, happiness, and parental guidance. One of the ways that I dealt with our hardship was to make friends at school and not to let my financial hardships embarrass me. I remember my friends telling me that they loved to come to my house because my grandpa made the best beans and rice ever. They never judged me for my clothes or shoes, my friends came over and we played, and some even spend the night. Japan is one of the biggest financial powerhouses in the world, but they still suffer from poverty. Not only parents suffer from economic burden, but children are the ones who suffer the most. According to Masanori Matsumura, “a primary school teacher for 30 years, a growing number of children in Japan today cannot even afford classroom supplies "such as paints or craft materials." He adds, "The expanding poverty is hitting the most vulnerable victims – children." (Murakami, M. 2010). Parents are having to work more than one job just to make ends meet, which leads to parents not having time to spend with their children. “Children grow frustrated – even turn violent in some cases – when their parents are not around to take care of them because of the resulting neglect by parents” (Murakami, M. 2010). There are other consequences to being poverty level as well. Parents cannot provide for school lunches or pay for health insurance, which leads to poor health. “The local media, for instance, reported that 33,000 children across the nation did not have health insurance” (Murakami, M. 2010). To overcome the issues of poverty, Japan is relying on tourists to spend money at their shops, food, and vacation resorts. “Another policy guarantees free senior high school education for everyone, with the government pledging to pay 120,000 to 240,000 yen (1,287 to 2,574 dollars) for each student, depending on the schools’ and parents’ incomes” (Murakami, M. 2010). Although poverty strikes everyone, there are certain measures that can be done to help allocate for spending, but if children are important enough, society will do everything in their power to ensure a safe and healthy future for the children. References Mutsuko, Murakami. (January 8, 2010). Japan’s rude awakening: Poverty hurts. Retrieved from. (http://www.ipsnews.net/news.asp?idnews=49915).