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APHA Scientific Session and Event Listing

Recorded presentation

Stephanie Ettinger de Cuba, MPH¹, Deborah A. Frank, MD², Nicole Neault, MPH³, Mariana Chilton, PhD, MPH⁴, John Cook, PhD⁵, Carol Berkowitz, MD⁶, Maureen Black, PhD⁷, Patrick Casey, MD⁸, Diana B. Cutts, MD⁹, Alan F. Meyers, MD, MPH², Nieves Zaldivar, MD¹⁰, Suzette Levenson, MPH, MEd¹, Timothy Heeren, PhD¹¹, and Zhaoyan Yang, MS¹. (1) Data Coordinating Center, Boston University School of Public Health, 715 Albany St., 580 Building, Boston, MA 02118, 617-638-5850, sedc@bu.edu, (2) Department of Pediatrics, Boston Medical Center, 725 Massachusetts Avenue, Mezzanine floor, SW, Boston, MA 02118, (3) Center for American Indian Health, Johns Hopkins University School of Public Health, 6200 Eubank Blvd NE, #923, Albuquerque, NM 87111, (4) Community Health and Prevention, Drexel University School of Public Health, 1505 Race St., Philadelphia, PA 19102, (5) Growth and Development Program, Boston Medical Center, 725 Masssachusetts Ave., Mezzanine SW, Boston, MA 02118, (6) Dept of Pediatrics, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center, 1000 W. Carson Street, Bin 437, Torrance, CA 90509, (7) Department of Pediatrics, University of Maryland School of Medicine, 737 W. Lombard Street, Suite 169, Baltimore, MD 21201, (8) Department of Pediatrics, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, 800 Marshall Street, Little Rock, AR 72202, (9) Department of Pediatrics, Hennepin County Medical Center, 701 Park Ave, Minneapolis, MN 55415, (10) Dept of Pediatrics, Mary's Center for Maternal and Child Care, 2333 Ontario Road N.W., Washington, DC 20009, (11) Department of Biostatistics, Boston University, School of Public Health, 715 Albany Street, Tablot E424, Boston, MA 02118

This study measured associations between participation in federal assistance programs and anthropometric status of young Black and Latino children, who disproportionately suffer from food insecurity (FI), which is associated with poor child health. Growth is an internationally accepted children's health indicator. Since 1998 the Children's Sentinel Nutrition Assessment Program has tracked FI, health, and access to public assistance by caregiver interview for children 0-3 years in 6 urban emergency departments and health clinics. Black and Latino children comprise over 80% of the sample (16529/20504). All analyses in this study are controlled for FI and WIC participation. Black children in families who did not receive a housing subsidy were more likely to be underweight than those who did. (AOR=1.33, 95% CI=1.09, 1.63) Latino children in families who did not receive a subsidy were more likely to be short than those who did. (AOR=1.99, 95% CI=1.11, 3.58) Black children in families who did not receive LIHEAP were more likely to be at nutritional risk for growth problems (<5th percentile weight-for-age or <10th percentile weight-for-height) than those who did. (AOR=1.29, 95% CI=1, 1.66) The results for Latino children were not significant. Programs not usually considered child nutrition programs appear to be positively associated with young Black and Latino children's growth. In a time when cuts to federal safety net programs are presented as a choice between food assistance and housing/fuel assistance, protecting funding for a full package of benefits is a social investment that may also contribute to decreasing racial/ethnic disparities in health.

Learning Objectives: At the conclusion of the session, the participant (learner) in this session will be able to

• Describe differences in food insecurity and health outcomes among young Black and Latino children.
• Articulate policy and human rights issues related to racial/ethnic health disparities in participation in federal assistance programs, especially those not traditionally considered child nutrition programs, such as subsidized housing and LIHEAP.
• Identify the association between federal assistance participation, food insecurity, and growth in Black and Latino children.

Keywords: Child Health, Minorities

Presenting author's disclosure statement:

Any relevant financial relationships? No

Recorded presentation