scholarly journals Food Insecurity: A Constant Factor in the Lives of Low-Income Families in Scotland and England

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jackie Shinwell ◽  
Margaret Anne Defeyter
Keyword(s):  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
Constant Factor ◽  
School Meals ◽  
Free School ◽  
Food And Agriculture ◽  
Food Shopping ◽  
Low Income Families ◽  
Academic Year

During the school summer holidays, pressures on the already tight budgets of low-income families are compounded, particularly when the safety net of free school meals is removed. The main aim of the current study was to investigate how low-income parents and carers feed their families during term time when children receive free school meals and if, and how, strategies differ during the school summer holidays. A secondary aim was to investigate the role of holiday activity and food programmes in supporting parents and carers to feed their children during the school summer holidays. We used purposive sampling to recruit a total of 21 parents (N = 20 Female, N = 1 Male) whose children attended free summer holiday clubs in Scotland and England during summer 2017. Participants were asked about their food and shopping habits during the school term and if, and how they differed during the school summer holidays when free school meals were not available. The findings suggest that food insecurity is a constant factor in the lives of low-income parents in England and Scotland, and that the stages of food insecurity and the strategies employed to mitigate its effects appear to be cyclical, aligning with the Food and Agriculture Organisation's (FAO) food insecurity continuum and the school academic year. During term time, parents and carers worried about food, suggesting they were experiencing mild food insecurity, despite their children being in receipt of free school meals. As the school holidays approached, moderate food insecurity was experienced as parents reported that they began “provisioning,” storing food and reducing household expenditure. During the summer holidays, food did not last, and parental food acquisition habits became more intense. Parents downgraded food brands and bought reduced price items of food. Ultimately, parents self-sacrificed their own nutritional intake by only buying food their children would eat and parents often skipped meals or only ate their children's leftovers. However, children's attendance at holiday club helped make the food at home last longer and once school resumed, parents returned to their less intense, but constantly coping approach to food shopping. The findings of this study suggest that food insecurity is a constant factor in the lives of low-income families who simply do not have enough household income to prevent them from experiencing food insecurity, even when initiatives such as free school meals and access to holiday club provision with food and activities are in place.

scholarly journals Hunger in Higher Education: Experiences and Correlates of Food Insecurity among Wisconsin Undergraduates from Low-Income Families

2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (10) ◽  
pp. 179 ◽  
Author(s):  
Katharine Broton ◽  
Kari Weaver ◽  
Minhtuyen Mai
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Food Security ◽  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Safety Net ◽  
Background Characteristics ◽  
Food Security Status ◽  
Low Income Families ◽  
Public Colleges And Universities ◽  
Higher Education Experiences

There is growing awareness that a substantial share of undergraduates are food insecure, potentially undermining investments in higher education and hindering upward social mobility. This mixed-methods paper uses survey and interview data from low-income students at 42 public colleges and universities in Wisconsin to illuminate the day-to-day experiences of food insecurity and examine how food security status varies across background characteristics. Results indicate that students who grew up in food insecure homes, self-identify as a racial/ethnic minority, live off-campus, and attend college in an urban area are significantly more likely to report the lowest level of food security, often associated with hunger. Students explain that challenges stemming from the interrelationship of lack of time and inadequate money are their biggest barriers to food security. Most rely on friends or family for support, but few students draw on the social safety net, in part due to eligibility restrictions. In recognition of the diversity of students’ experiences, we discuss the need for a multi-faceted response to promote food security and student success.

scholarly journals Half of children entitled to free school meals do not have access to the scheme during the COVID-19 lockdown in the UK

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jennie C Parnham ◽  
Anthony A Laverty ◽  
Azeem Majeed ◽  
Eszter P Vamos
Keyword(s):  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Survey Design ◽  
Food Bank ◽  
School Meals ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Free School ◽  
The Uk ◽  
To Receive ◽  
Second Wave

ABSTRACTObjectivesTo investigate access to free school meals (FSM) among eligible children, to describe factors associated with uptake and investigate whether receiving FSM was associated with measures of food insecurity in the UK using the COVID-19 wave of the UK Household Longitudinal Study (UKHKS).Study designCross sectional analyses of questionnaire data collected in April 2020.Methods635 children who were FSM eligible with complete data were included in the analytic sample. Accessing a FSM was defined as receiving a FSM voucher or a cooked meal at school. Multivariable logistic regression was used to investigate (i) associations between characteristics and access to FSM and (ii) associations between access to FSM and household food insecurity measures. All analyses accounted for survey design and sample weights to ensure representativenessResults51% of eligible children accessed a FSM. Children in junior schools or above (aged 8+ years) (Adjusted Odds Ratio (AOR) 11.81; 95% CI 5.54,25.19), who were low income (AOR 4.81; 95% CI 2.10,11.03) or still attending schools (AOR 5.87; 95% CI 1.70,20.25) were more likely to receive FSM. Children in Wales were less likely to access FSM than those in England (AOR 0.11; 95% CI 0.03,0.43). Receiving a FSM was associated with an increased odds of recently using a food bank, but not reporting feeling hungry.ConclusionsIn the month following the COVID-19 lockdown, 49% of eligible children did not receive any form of FSM. The present analyses highlight that the voucher scheme did not adequately serve children who could not attend school during the lockdown. Moreover, more needs to be done to support families relying on income-related benefits, who still report needing to access a foodbank. As the scheme may be continued in summer or in a potential second wave, large improvements will be needed to improve its reach.

Family Chaos and Household Routines are Associated With Food Insecurity in Low-Income Families

2013 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brenda Koester ◽  
Barbara H. Fiese ◽  
Craig Gundersen ◽  
Meghan Fisher
Keyword(s):  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Family Chaos ◽  
Low Income Families

scholarly journals “You run out of hope:” An Exploration of Low-Income Parents’ Experiences with Food Insecurity using Photovoice

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
Payge Lindow ◽  
Irene H. Yen ◽  
Mingyu Xiao ◽  
Cindy W. Leung
Keyword(s):  
Food Insecurity ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Eating Behaviors ◽  
Comparative Method ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Structured Interviews ◽  
Unhealthy Eating ◽  
Low Income Families ◽  
The Impact

ABSTRACT Objective: Using an adaption of the Photovoice method, this study explored how food insecurity affected parents’ ability to provide food for their family, their strategies for managing household food insecurity, and the impact of food insecurity on their well-being. Design: Parents submitted photos around their families’ experiences with food insecurity. Afterwards, they completed in-depth, semi-structured interviews about their photos. The interviews were transcribed and analyzed for thematic content using the constant comparative method. Setting: San Francisco Bay Area, California, USA. Subjects: 17 parents (14 mothers and 3 fathers) were recruited from a broader qualitative study on understanding the experiences of food insecurity in low-income families. Results: Four themes were identified from the parents’ photos and interviews. First, parents described multiple aspects of their food environment that promoted unhealthy eating behaviors. Second, parents shared strategies they employed to acquire food with limited resources. Third, parents expressed feelings of shame, guilt, and distress resulting from their experience of food insecurity. And finally, parents described treating their children to special foods to cultivate a sense of normalcy. Conclusions: Parents highlighted the external contributors and internal struggles of their experiences of food insecurity. Additional research to understand the experiences of the food-insecure families may help to improve nutrition interventions targeting this structurally vulnerable population.

scholarly journals DOES BREASTFEEDING DURATION INFLUENCE FAMILY FOOD INSECURITY?

2018 ◽  
Vol 23 (suppl_1) ◽  
pp. e6-e6
Author(s):  
Peter Wong ◽  
Rosemary Moodie ◽  
David Dai ◽  
Jonathon Maguire ◽  
Catherine Birken ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Public Policy ◽  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Family Income ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Research Network ◽  
Breastfeeding Duration ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Adequate Food ◽  
Low Income Families

Abstract BACKGROUND Across all demographics, families without consistent access to adequate food place children at health risk. Consequences may persist beyond early life into adulthood. Public policy positions breastfeeding, the ideal nutrition for infants, as an important solution to reducing family food insecurity (FFI). However, few studies have investigated the association between breastfeeding duration and FFI. OBJECTIVES To evaluate the association between total breastfeeding duration and FFI in Canadian urban children. DESIGN/METHODS A cross-sectional study was conducted of children aged 0–2 years, from a practice-based child research network. Total breastfeeding duration was collected from parent-reported questionnaires. FFI was measured using 2-item food insecurity and validated 1-item NutriSTEP screens. Multivariable regression analysis was performed adjusting for pre-specified covariates. RESULTS Among 3838 children, the mean total breastfeeding duration was 10.6 months (SD=6.7). Families with food insecurity (14.7%) had increased odds of younger mothers, more males and older and more children. In adjusted model, breastfeeding duration was not associated with FFI (OR 0.99; 95% CI 0.98, 1.01). Low-income families were 9 times more likely to be family food insecure than high-income families (p=0.00). CONCLUSION Contrary to public policy, our study found no association between breastfeeding and family food insecurity (FFI). However, other factors may predominate, in particular family income and structure. Given the detrimental impact of FFI, further research is needed to understand the role of infant feeding practices within the larger political, policy and cultural framework.

Universal versus Targeted Benefits: The Distributional Effects of Free School Meals

10.1068/c0457 ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 23 (4) ◽  
pp. 583-598 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carlo J Morelli ◽  
Paul T Seaman
Keyword(s):  
Low Income ◽  
Current System ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Policy Debate ◽  
School Meals ◽  
Welfare Provision ◽  
Free School ◽  
The Past ◽  
State Education ◽  
The Impact

UK government policy over the past thirty years has seen a movement away from universal provision of welfare towards the targeting of welfare. The advent of devolution in Scotland, and to a lesser degree Wales, has, however, created new policy forums in which the shift towards targeted benefits has been reversed in a number of important fields. Welfare provision in relation to children is a further key area in which this policy debate has emerged. Little evidence has been provided for the effectiveness of this shift in policy until now. We examine the effect of this divergence in welfare policy. We look at the issue of universality and targeting by examining the impact of the proposal for the introduction of universal free school meals to all children in full-time state education. The current system of free school meals is found to be the least effective method of welfare provision. Other methods of targeting are found to be more effective than the current system, but universal provision is found to be the only mechanism for consistently providing welfare to all low-income households.

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