Food Insecurity: Public Health Enemy #1

"Food insecurity is a public health problem that threatens the development of children and the immediate health of elders on medically prescribed diets." That was the message of Dr. Christine Olson, Professor of Nutritional Sciences at Cornell University, to 100 participants at a statewide conference of nutritionists and anti-hunger activists in State College May 22-23.

"The consequences of food insecurity are decreased intake of fruits and vegeatbles, increased risk of obesity in women, and compromised ability to resist illness among children, " said Olson. "These effects ultimately take a toll on the health of food insecure individuals."

One in every ten Americans is food insecure, according to data collected by the U.S. Census Bureau for the U.S. Department of Agriculture. To put a face on this problem, Olson quoted a woman who had experienced both hunger and food insecurity. "Going hungry, hungry is when there is absolutely nothing in the house. But also going hungry is when you have to eat the same thing all week long and you have no variation from it. You know sooner or later you're gonna run out of that too, because its only gonna go so far. So each day you cut the portions down a little bit smaller and a little bit smaller….And you have a tendency to send your kids off to play with somebody, so that they're there at mealtime so that they do eat."

Food insecurity is common among low-income families; nearly one-third are unable to meet basic food needs without resorting to emergency measures. In these families, the mother typically tries to shield the rest of the family from deprivation. Olson quoted a mother: "Usually what I do is eat what the children haven't ate. A lot of times I just skip. If I can't eat for the day, I'll try to get toast or something in me."

A health assessment of rural children conducted during the '90s by Cornell University found that children living in food insecure households were more than twice as likely to be rated as having health in the fair to poor range. The researchers also noted immediate health concerns (including increased rates of emergency hospitalization) among food insecure elders who require specific foods because of diabetes or hypoglycemia.

Olson emphasized the important role of nutrition in the public debate about the high cost of health care. "Each year diabetics who are food insecure make millions of doctor calls/visits and emergency room visits. These expenses could be avoided by addressing the basic problem - not enough nutritious food."

Tanya Thampi-Sen of the Greater Philadelphia Coalition Against Hunger is both nutritionist and hunger advocate. She summed up the interaction: "Unfortunately, when you do not have the resources to make your own choices about the foods you eat, you have little control about what goes into your body. Sometimes the choices you make are not so much based on healthy foods, but on what will fill your stomach. This is the situation that too many people in our country are experiencing. As a result, what we are seeing are nutrition related health problems like obesity, anemia, hypertension and cancer manifesting themselves. Of course nutrition education is extremely important but without access to healthy foods first, we are telling food insecure families fairy tales."

The "Strengthening the Food Resources Safety Net" conference was sponsored by Pennsylvania Hunger Action and the Pennsylvania Nutrition Education Network and was supported in part by the PA Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED).

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