Food Energy and Nutrients Per Dollar's Worth of Food From Available Home Food Supplies

A retrospective study compared Food Stamp Program (FSP) and non-FSP participants on changes in dietary intake and food-related behaviors as a result of an educational intervention. Data were collected at preintervention and postintervention on 4121 low-income adults, using 24-hour recalls and a Food Behavior Checklist (FBC). Both FSP and non-FSP participants made significant improvements on assessed food groups, nutrients, and FBC items. Few differences were found on dietary change, but FSP participants made more improvement on 4 FBC items. Results indicate that nutrition education is similarly effective in improving dietary intake and food-related behaviors of FSP and non-FSP participants.

Food stamps, food costs, nuctrient availbility, and nutrient intake

Understanding Obesity and Program Participation in the Context of Poverty and Food Insecurity

Using data from the Nationwide Food Consumption Surrey, 1977–78, this study assessed the influence of household size and composition, household income, and eligibility/participation in the Food Stamp Programme (FSP) on the weekly money value of specified food groups used from the household food supply. Mean money values of foods by food groups were calculated for various sample partitions and proportions of total food value allocated to the 12 specified food groups were analysed using ordinary least squares regression. Results indicated that household size had a statistically significant impact on household food consumption patterns. As per capita household income increased, percentage allocations to high‐cost meats and beverages generally increased while percentage allocations for the other 10 food groups decreased. The money value of food used per equivalent food energy need increased with decreasing household size and with increasing per capita household income. These relationships occurred for total food and for most of the specified food groups. Households that participated in the FSP used food with higher money value per‐equivalent food energy need than did households who were eligible but did not participate in the FSP.

Our overarching goal is to understand critical determinants of low-income elderly Americans’ well being as measured by health status. We focus on whether and how elderly health status is affected by FSP participation, food sufficiency and other determinants. To do so we must first ascertain (1) why so few needy elderly households choose to receive food stamps; (2) what determines their level of food insufficiency and finally; (3) how FSP participation and food insufficiency link to each other and then to health status. To meet our goal, we estimate and assess a unique econometric framework applied to an analysis database created specifically for this project. The analysis data are a subset of elderly households from the 2002 Health and Retirement Survey (HRS), consisting of those eligible for food stamps. State-specific eligibility criteria were obtained from the Urban Institute’s waiver database and from Center on Budget and Policy Priorities publications. The econometric model is structured in two steps. In the first, simultaneous multivariate Probit estimates of endogenous FSP participation and food insufficiency equations are estimated. From the results, we calculate predicted probabilities of participation and insufficiency for use in Step Two. This final step involves Ordered Probit estimation of self-reported health status. Because predicted variables from Step One are included as explanatory variables, we adjust the standard errors of the Ordered Probit estimates to allow for accurate hypothesis testing. We extend Murphy and Topel’s (1985) modification of standard errors for one predicted variable to handle two such variables. After correcting the standard errors, some coefficients lose their significance; most importantly, the positive coefficient for the probability of FSP participation. The significant coefficients that remain are: food insufficiency (+) income (-), widowed (+), Nonhispanic Black (-), exercise (-) and drink alcoholic beverages (-).

Effects of WIC and Food Stamp Program participation on child outcomes

Previous research revealed widespread use of herbals by caregivers and children attending the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).1This project developed a technology‐based herbal program for WIC clinics and examined participant response. Information about 5 most frequently used herbs 1 (garlic, peppermint, ginger, Echinacea, cranberries) formed the basis of a program delivered by digital photo receiver (DPR). WIC staff and target audience helped develop the herbal DPR program and materials for recruitment and assessment. Prior to planned statewide dissemination, responses from 282 (N=26 male) WIC clients (78.6% < 36 years) attending 2 urban and 2 rural clinics were examined. Only 27.3% had no experience with herbal use for themselves or their children; 47.5% were current herbal users. The herbal program was useful for 98.5% and liked by 93.2%; a take away information card was useful for 93.8%. Food Stamp program (FSP) participation was reported by 37.3%; participation increased to 56.4% when including prior food stamp use. FSP participation was associated (P=.04) with current herbal use; 52.5% of FSP participants used herbals compared to 40.2% for persons never participating in FSP. Child mean herbal use was higher with FSP experience (1.26 ±1.28 vs. 0.82 ± 1.26 herbals; P=.004). A trend for FSP participants to learn new information from the DPR herbal program (82.1% vs. 73.5% for non‐FSP; P=.09) combined with widespread herbal use suggests herbal education for FSP participants is reasonable and necessary.Funded by the Pennsylvania Nutrition Education Tracks, a part of USDA's Food Stamp Program.

The Food Stamp Program (FSP) administered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the cornerstone of the U.S. federal income and food safety net policy. The FSP has subsidized the food budget for millions of American households for over forty years, spending more than $60 billion per year in recent times. Prior research has demonstrated that women who participate in the FSP are more likely to be overweight or obese than eligible non-participants. This finding raises the concern that the additional income provided by FSP benefits induces participants to eat significantly more calories and gain weight, contributing to the U.S. obesity epidemic. Previous studies of the FSP have yielded mixed results. In this study we develop new conceptual and empirical models linking FSP participation, calorie consumption, physical activity, and weight gain, while controlling for genetic variation, weight history, and other physiological characteristics of individuals. The models enable us to test whether participants gained more weight, ate more calories, or engaged less in physical activity; or if previously omitted variables and individual health characteristics explain the higher prevalence of obesity among female FSP participants. We find a positive relationship between FSP participation and weight gain for a small subset of women. We do not find convincing evidence for the hypothesis that FSP participation causes obesity by increasing caloric consumption, decreasing physical activity, or some combination of the two. Our findings suggest that a positive association between FSP and weight exists, but we find no evidence of a direct causal link from one to the other. The association between weight and FSP likely results from confounding factors that make individuals more likely both to gain weight and to participate in the FSP.

Long-Term Food Stamp Program Participation is Differentially Related to Overweight in Young Girls and Boys

This study examines the dynamic relationship between a household’s Food Stamp Program (FSP) participation and the extent to which children in the household are overweight or obese. In contrast to previous studies employing static models, our results suggest that FSP participation significantly affects the deviation of current body mass index (BMI) from the ideal level in older male children who are currently underweight and for older female children who are already overweight. For older male children, the effect is desirable; for older females, however, our findings indicate that FSP participation has an adverse effect on their health and may contribute to being overweight or obese.

Food Stamp Program Participation is Positively Related to Obesity in Low Income Women

Low income populations are more severely affected by economic downturns than their high income counterparts because they are at high risk of unemployment and face reduced earnings in recessions. The use of food stamp benefits and other types of welfare are one mechanism that families can use to buffer the economic shock brought about by income losses due to unemployment during a recession. As a result, during unfavorable economic conditions, low income households disproportionately rely on public assistance including food stamps. What is less understood are the differential effects of macroeconomic conditions on the participation propensities of different population subgroups. Of particular importance are differential effects by age. Depending on their age, poor workers are likely to experience different patterns of unemployment so that their welfare participation patterns also differ. For example, once older workers lose their jobs, their probability of re-employment is lower than that of their younger counterparts. The reduced expectations of re-employment coupled with fewer opportunities to invest in re-training are discouraging to older unemployed persons, often implying that job losses for older workers are permanent, and eventually lead to long term reliance on welfare programs. In contrast, younger poor workers have comparatively higher chances of re-employment and exit from welfare. Whether the age differences in welfare participation will remain unchanged during economic recessions as well is still unanswered. Understanding variations in FSP participation propensities across age groups and their dependency on macroeconomic conditions is essential to predict future demand for food stamp benefits and, by extension, other welfare programs. The continuing growth in FSP demand may point to unexpectedly large fiscal burdens for future taxpayers. Moreover, understanding differential effects of macroeconomic conditions on participation propensities for different groups will allow policy makers to better identify and eventually reach genuine needy families. Therefore, this study aims to investigate FSP participation patterns with a special emphasis on the differential impact of macroeconomic factors across several demographic groups with a particular focus on age cohort effects. Specifically, transitions into and out of FSP will be explicitly addressed using longitudinal data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) 2004 panel. To measure the impact of economic conditions, we match SIPP data with economic measures such as the unemployment rate and wages at the state level available from the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Using the data, monthly movements on and off of FSP of individuals is followed and categorized into entry sample and continuation sample. A household not participating in FSP in one month, and thus being part of the entry sample, can choose between entering or not entering FSP in the subsequent month. Similarly, a household enrolled in one month (and thus part of the continuation sample) can choose between either continuing to stay on FSP or exiting FSP in the next month. This gives rise to two types of transition models. The first model, referred to as the entry model, tackles the decision between entry versus non-entry into FSP, conditional on non-participation in the previous months. The second model, referred to as continuation model, addresses the decision between exiting from versus continuing FSP, conditional upon participation in the preceding month. Two transition models are estimated using probit technique while controlling for individual specific effects. This study finds several important results. First, there are significant age differences in entry into and exit from the FSP. The propensity of entry into the FSP among younger people is higher than among older people while young cohorts are more prone to exiting FSP than the oldest cohort of retired or retirement-bound people. The implication for the elderly is that once receiving FSP benefits, they are very likely to continue the FSP. Their observed low FSP participation rates can thus primarily be attributed to FSP entry barriers. Second, rising unemployment boosts FSP entry propensities and lengthens FSP spells. Changes in wage levels, however, affect neither entry nor exit propensities. Third, the effect of unemployment on FSP continuation propensities varies by age. The youngest cohort responds to increasing unemployment by drastically prolonging their FSP spells whereas the older extend their FSP spells more gradually. For the oldest cohort, FSP exit probabilities are even found to rise in association with rising unemployment, a phenomenon that can be explained by retirement and special transfer programs for the elderly.

The relationship between Food Stamp Program (FSP) participation and household food insecurity (FI) is investigated using data from the 1996–1997 National Food Stamp Program Survey. Endogeneity of FSP participation is accommodated with an instrumental variables approach. In contrast to other findings reported in the literature, results suggest participation in the FSP reduces the severity of FI. Sociodemographic variables play important roles in FSP participation and FI. Underreporting of FSP participation and limited observations of food‐insecure households in previous studies may have also been factors.

Understanding the geography of food stamp program participation: Do space and place matter?

Objective. Food assistance programs play an important role in meeting the basic needs of low‐income households. We consider how the Food Stamp Program (FSP), labor force participation, and food insecurity status affect outcomes of low‐income households under different program designs and economic conditions.Methods. Data from the Survey of Program Dynamics allow estimation of the effects of participation in FSP, labor market participation, and food insecurity on each other. To obtain estimates of behavioral relationships, we apply a simultaneous equation model and make a set of plausible assumptions about identification to implement the instrumental variable estimation.Results. Food insecurity has a positive effect on FSP participation, while labor force participation reduces FSP participation. Furthermore, FSP participation is more responsive to changes in the amount of program benefits than to changes in nonlabor income. Labor force participation has no direct effect on food insecurity; although not statistically significant, the effect of FSP participation on food insecurity is positive. A higher wage rate decreases FSP participation and increases participation in the labor force.Conclusion. The structural approach, which relies on particular identifying assumptions, allows us to explicity examine linkages among food program participation, labor force participation, and well‐being, measured in terms of food insecurity. The results provide evidence that among low‐income households, program parameters affect FSP participation, but no evidence that the food assistance reduces food insecurity.