Food Sufficiency - Children in Massachusetts

Massachusetts

Access to sufficient food is critical for proper nutrition and health, particularly during childhood. Children need to consume a variety of nutrients to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Consistent access to nutritious food is essential to promote health throughout development and prevent diet-related chronic diseases in adulthood. Healthy eating patterns during childhood development look different at each stage of life and can change based on activity level. Access to healthy and affordable foods can promote better eating habits and reduce the risk of developing chronic health conditions, including:

• High blood pressure and heart disease.
• Type 2 diabetes.
• Cancer.
• Osteoporosis (a disease that weakens bones).
• Iron deficiency.
• Cavities.

The direct and indirect health-related costs of hunger and food insecurity in the United States were conservatively estimated at $160 billion in 2014. That estimate rises to roughly $179 billion after adding education-related costs, such as special education support and school dropout costs.

The affordability of food and access to local food sources heavily influence nutrition. According to data from the National Survey for Children’s Health, the prevalence of food sufficiency is higher among:

• Non-Hispanic Asian and white children compared with non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic children. 
• Children from higher-income households compared with those from lower-income households. Many residents of low-income metropolitan areas face barriers to accessing healthy foods because of limited resources and high prices.
• Children from households with an adult who has a college degree or higher compared with those growing up in households where the highest level of educational attainment is some college or less. 

The first step toward increasing food sufficiency is reducing food insecurity — the lack of consistent access to enough nutritious food. In primary care settings, pediatricians can use screening tools to identify food insecurity in households with children. Educating medical students and residents on food insecurity may also help.

Studies show that food assistance programs, including the School Breakfast Program (SBP), the National School Lunch Program (NSLP), the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), can improve food security among children. Recommended improvements to these food assistance programs include:

• Expanding SNAP benefits. 
• Connecting more children from underserved communities to the programs. 
• Improving nutrition quality of the programs through science-based standards and guidelines. 

The Community Preventive Services Task Force recommends Healthy School Meals for All to increase participation in SBP and NSLP, improve diet quality, reduce school absenteeism and promote overall health and wellness among students. This program offers free breakfast and lunch to all students in qualifying schools, regardless of household income. 

Community agriculture initiatives can improve diets and food security in low-income areas. Collaboration between local farmers and community members in the food production process leads to healthier lifestyles, reliable access to nutritious food and a reduction in grocery expenses. 

Healthy People 2030 has a goal to eliminate very low food security in children.

Berkowitz, Seth A., Sanjay Basu, Craig Gundersen, and Hilary K. Seligman. “State-Level and County-Level Estimates of Health Care Costs Associated with Food Insecurity.” Preventing Chronic Disease 16 (July 11, 2019): 180549. https://doi.org/10.5888/pcd16.180549.

Cook, John, and Karen Jeng. “Child Food Insecurity: The Economic Impact on Our Nation.” Chicago, IL: Feeding America, 2009. https://www.nokidhungry.org/sites/default/files/child-economy-study.pdf.

Gitterman, Benjamin A., Lance A. Chilton, William H. Cotton, James H. Duffee, Patricia Flanagan, Virginia A. Keane, Scott D. Krugman, et al. “Promoting Food Security for All Children.” Pediatrics 136, no. 5 (November 1, 2015): e1431–38. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2015-3301.

Hartline-Grafton, Heather, and Sandra G. Hassink. “Food Insecurity and Health: Practices and Policies to Address Food Insecurity among Children.” Academic Pediatrics, July 2020, S1876285920304265. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.acap.2020.07.006.

Huang, Jin, and Ellen Barnidge. “Low-Income Children’s Participation in the National School Lunch Program and Household Food Insufficiency.” Social Science & Medicine 150 (February 1, 2016): 8–14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.socscimed.2015.12.020.

Kreider, Brent, John V. Pepper, and Manan Roy. “Identifying the Effect of WIC on Very Low Food Security among Infants and Children.” University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research Discussion Paper Series, DP2012-11. University of Kentucky Center for Poverty, October 2012. http://www.ukcpr.org/Publications/DP2012-11.pdf.

Ratcliffe, Caroline, Signe-Mary McKernan, and Sisi Zhang. “How Much Does the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Reduce Food Insecurity?” American Journal of Agricultural Economics 93, no. 4 (July 2011): 1082–98. https://doi.org/10.1093/ajae/aar026.

Rea, Samantha, Jay Jarodiya, Madeline Berschback, and Diane Levine. “Improving Food Insecurity Education in Medical School Through Integrative Service Learning.” Journal of Medical Education and Curricular Development 9 (January 2022): 238212052210962. https://doi.org/10.1177/23821205221096286.

“The Nourishing Effect: Ending Hunger, Improving Health, Reducing Inequality (2016 Hunger Report).” Washington, D.C.: Bread for the World Institute, 2015. http://hungerreport.org/2016/wp-content/uploads/2015/11/HR2016-Full-Report-Web.pdf.

U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. “Dietary Guidelines for Americans, 2020-2025.” Washington, D.C.: U.S. Department of Agriculture and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, December 2020. https://www.dietaryguidelines.gov/sites/default/files/2020-12/Dietary_Guidelines_for_Americans_2020-2025.pdf.