Methodology to Determine Food Acquisition Strategies among Homeless Youth

Abstract

BackgroundYouth represent a growing, and particularly vulnerable, subgroup of the homeless population in urban areas. Social service institutions, health care centers, and voluntary organizations have responded to this growth by creating a variety of programs to assist homeless youth in obtaining food, shelter, and medical care. Still, many of these individuals struggle each day to get the food they need. Only a handful of studies have examined the nutritional quality of meals available to homeless youth and how they obtain food. Lack of data is primarily due to the difficulty in studying this group due to their transiency and distrust of establishment figures.ObjectiveThe aim of this study is to create a method to describe how homeless youth access food and the nutritional quality and adequacy of food that they obtain.MethodsIn this cross‐sectional study, investigators orally administer a ~50‐item survey, adapted from published research, to homeless youth ages 14 to 24 in the greater Seattle/Tacoma area. Data collection takes place at multiple settings and organizations in which homeless youth access food. Individuals who meet inclusion criteria are invited to participate at these settings and are offered $10 at the completion of the survey. The survey asks information on general demographics; participants' current housing situation; factors relating to their ability to access food; and the kinds of food they acquire. Anonymity of participants is maintained by obtaining verbal assent rather than signed consent. All survey data is entered by researchers on site using REDCap™ software.SummaryCreating a method to gain a better understanding of how homeless youth obtain food and the nutritional quality of such food can help social services and nutrition programs improve the network of nutrition services and the quality of food available to this vulnerable population.Support or Funding InformationThis study was funded by a Bastyr University Faculty Student Research Grant (FSRG), award number H01A11.This abstract is from the Experimental Biology 2018 Meeting. There is no full text article associated with this abstract published in The FASEB Journal.