[VIDEO] PEOPLE: CHRISTINA AGUILERA TAKES EMOTIONAL TRUP TO RWANDA

[SMART-PHONE FRIENDLY]
Christina Aguilera knew visiting war-torn Rwanda would be eye-opening. But it wasn't until she spent time in Kigali, Rwanda, on a hunger relief mission this June – visiting refugee camps and seeing the severe poverty firsthand – that she discovered just how profoundly moving the experience would be.

"This trip came at a time when I really needed to step away and connect with bigger issues in the world, [and] this trip really touched me in a way I never felt before," says Aguilera, who is the global spokesperson for Yum! Brands World Hunger Relief effort and an Ambassador Against Hunger for the UN World Food Programme.

"I came home and really wondered about why some people are born to some situations and others are born in a different place," The Voice star tells PEOPLE. "I had to come to terms with a little guilt even for coming home and not doing more. The people of Rwanda touched me in a way I cannot express or put into words. They are in a place that needs our help and I am so proud of the work that we are doing there."

The time she spent with hundreds of Rwandan children during the trip was especially poignant for the Aguilera, who couldn't help but think of her 5-year-old, Max.

"After the birth of my son, I started looking into causes that touched me as a mother and I was so moved by the work the World Food Programme and Yum! did," says Aguilera, who has also visited Haiti and Guatemala on behalf of the group.

"As a mom, to know that there are kids that go to bed hungry is just not acceptable. Food is a human right in my mind and knowing that I can help means so much. In Rwanda, we visited a school. The kids walk approximately two miles to get there, not only to learn but for many this is their only meal of the day."

Even with her busy career and hectic life as a working mom, Aguilera has no plans to stop trying to help fight world hunger. Almost as soon as she returned home from Rwanda, she was sure of one thing: "I know I will go back."

Source: People

[VIDEO] CHRISTINA AGUILERA ACCEPTS HER PHILANTHROPY AWARD AT THE 'ALMA AWARDS'

[SMART-PHONE FRIENDLY]Source: Hextina

[PHOTOS] CHRISTINA AGUILERA SEES HUNGER FIRST-HAND IN GUATEMALA

Source: United Nations World Food Programme (WFP)

Date: 23 Sep 2009

Wanting to see the impact of hunger with her own eyes, the Grammy award-winning artist recently traveled to Guatemala and met some of the beneficiaries of WFP's nutrition programs there. For Aguilera, it was an unforgettable experience.

GUATEMALA CITY - Christina Aguilera just wanted to hug the young woman she met in a Guatemalan village: Concepción, 25 years old, her little daughter clinging to her legs, a second baby on the way.

Concepción was standing in a dirt floor hut, smoke filling the room from a wooden stove. She has no job, no money, her husband has just left her. She said the only food she receives is from WFP.

Aguilera explained: "I wanted to see with my own eyes what hunger means. As a mom my heart just breaks when I see how young mothers like Concepción struggle to feed their children. I don't think I can ever forget these images," the music superstar added.

Rampant malnutrition

Aguilera and her husband Jordan Bratman traveled with WFP to villages in the Guatemalan highlands near Lake Atitlan, where up to 80 percent of the indigenous children are malnourished. Guatemala has the fourth highest child malnutrition rate in the world.

"The people of WFP do such a great job helping hungry children and mothers,"said Aguilera. "I'm thankful for the opportunity to be part of such a wonderful project and incredible team." Her husband added: "This trip was a life-changing experience".

WFP brings life-saving food assistance to some 350,000 people in Guatemala – mostly women and children. It works closely with the Guatemalan government to battle chronic hunger.

"Keep feeding children"

"WFP urgently needs donations to keep feeding some 150,000 women and undernourished children – I want to raise awareness and open people's eyes so they can get the funds they need to keep on working," said Aguilera.

Many of the children Aguilera saw were much shorter than normal for their age - a consequence of not getting enough healthy food at an early age.

"One of the biggest lessons I'm taking away from this trip is the importance of healthy food. If a child under two doesn't get the nutrients they need, we can never fix the damage later on," the singer said.