The Eating Patterns and Problems of Homeless Women

Abstract

While inadequate nutrition has been identified as a factor affecting the health of the homeless, there has been little research to identify the extent to which inadequate nutrition is a problem. The goal of this paper is to document the eating patterns and problems of single homeless women and to locate the determinants of nutritional adequacy in their diets. Our findings are based on a random sample of 84 single homeless women using hostels and drop-in centers. For 85.5% of the women food was provided primarily by hostels and supplemented by the drop-ins. When their daily food intake was compared to the Canada's Food Guide recommendations, the average number of servings in each of the four food groups was below the recommended. The women in our sample indicated that their problems with food consumption were rooted in their poverty and further analysis indicated that the provision of food by social agencies was an important factor in the nutritional adequacy of their diets. Hostels and drop-in centers not only provide shelter, they have also assumed most of the responsibility for feeding the homeless. It is their poverty which burdens these women and structures their eating patterns.