Food stamp program participation, informal supports, household food security and child food security: A comparison of african american and caucasian households in poverty

Abstract

More than 12 million children in the U.S. live in a food insecure household. Insufficient nutrition puts children at risk for health and developmental problems. Little is known about a racial comparison of food security among economically vulnerable households. This study examines how the effects of household characteristics, food stamp program (FSP) (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program as of October 1, 2008) participation, informal food supports (IFS) and household food security (HFS) on child food security (CFS) differ between African American and Caucasian Households. We also explore moderating roles of FSP or IFS on the association between HFS and CFS. We use data from the 2003 Food Security Survey, a supplement to the Current Population Survey (CPS) (N = 3,799). Findings revealed that HFS was negatively related to CFS while IFS and head of the household's level of education were positively related to CFS in both racial groups. FSP participation increased CFS for Caucasian households but had no effect on CFS in African American households. IFS positively moderated the impact of HFS on CFS only for Caucasian households. No moderating effects of FSP participation were found. Implication for practice and future research are discussed.