Every day we talk more and more about children growing up in poverty. “Relative and absolute child poverty levels were projected to reach 24% and 23% by the year 2020/2021.” (Peter Adamson, 2012) “In 2015, nearly 1.2 million Canadian children under the age of eight lived in low-income families. Children represent almost a quarter of low-income people in Canada.” (Statistics Canada, 2017) No parent wants their child to grow up this way, but poverty is a serious problem in today's society. “Millions of children lose their childhood due to poverty. It deprives them of the skills needed to survive, develop and thrive. It prevents them from enjoying equal opportunities and makes children more vulnerable to violence, abuse and discrimination." (UNICEF, 2005) Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Children who grow up in poverty usually come from a single parent, with a single income. Children are at greater risk of health problems, developmental delays, behavioral disorders, lower educational attainment, and more likely to live in poverty as adults. This is due to the environment in which they grew up. “Children living in poverty are more likely to have low birth weight, asthma, type two diabetes, poor oral hygiene and suffer from many other health, social, mental health and self-esteem problems.” problems. Probably, as they grow up, they will also experience addiction to alcohol or drugs." Parents do their best to provide for their children, but it is especially difficult to live on little or no income. Everything has a price and parents struggle to support their families. Most low-income families live paycheck to paycheck or are on some sort of government assistance. Parents struggle every day to decide whether to pay bills or buy food for themselves and their children. It's cheaper to buy a happy meal at Mc Donald's than to buy fresh fruit and vegetables. Trying to save as much money as possible, parents will likely choose the cheapest route. Children who cannot eat nutritious meals will become malnourished and their immune systems will be much weaker, meaning they will get sick more easily. If this happens and they get sick, it's really difficult for a parent to get them to a medical clinic or emergency room. This is because they have no transportation or money for medicine, so they usually don't go unless it's an emergency. There are also Salvation Army units for those who need to go get food, clothing and even shelter if needed, but as previously mentioned it is difficult to get there as we live far away and have no transportation. Most of the time parents and sometimes one of their children go to food banks in all weathers. This is also why they get sick because most of the time they are not dressed properly for the weather. A child's mental health is a major concern living in a low-income family. This is because they always face discrimination about where they live, what they wear, from kids at school why they don't participate in any extracurricular activities, etc… This usually leads to depression. A child should never be teased about his or her lifestyle. “Most children living with mental illness grow up facing barriers to attending school and finding work. As a result, they are more likely to die prematurely than.