USDA has found, in large national survey data, that predictors of food insufficiency and hunger include low income, lower food expenditures, younger children in the household, more children, Black or Hispanic ethnicity and female single-parent head of family. In the Alameda County CalWORKs Needs Assessment of 512 randomly-sampled TANF families, 90% of respondents are female single-parents. Overall, food insecurity and hunger during the past year were higher than national averages for equally poor families, with 40.6% food insecure, 11.5% moderately hungry and 2.9% severely hungry. Food insecurity was distributed throughout the sample in surprising ways. Number of children appears unrelated to hunger, but 21% of household members were someone other than mothers (or fathers) and their children, perhaps in response to high housing costs. The highest rates of food insecurity and severe hunger were found among those with the highest incomes relative to poverty, Whites (52.2%, 4.5%) and Hispanics, with distinct differences between those who speak English at home (54.3%, 8.3%) and those who speak Spanish at home (48%, 0%). Vietnamese had the lowest rates of food insecurity, while African-Americans and Others were in between. Why were some of these families hungry and others not? Predictors and preventors of hunger and food insecurity were explored with multivariate models. Independent variables included Food Stamps, food program participation, public and private sources of income, housing status and assistance, family support, work history and current working, physical, mental and substance abuse disabilities, family care demands, other hardships, ethnicity and family composition.
Learning Objectives: 1. Recognize USDA Hunger Scale questions, and possible linguistic difference issues. 2. Identify the effects, or lack of effects, of food safety net programs on hunger. 3. Identify other factors influencing food insecurity in a welfare-eligible population, including ethnicity, health, mental health, substance use and household composition
Keywords: Hunger, Substance Abuse
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: None
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.