Data collected in the Children’s HealthWatch sample shows an increase in food insecurity among families with young children from 18.5% in 2007 to 22.6% in 2008. They also find that children who are food insecure are 30% more likely to be hospitalized, 90% more likely to be in fair or poor health, and nearly twice as likely to have iron deficiency anemia.
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An article in the Washington Post highlights the increase in homelessness as a result of the economic downturn, which has left homeless many families and individuals who previously had steady jobs and housing. Women now make up 81% of adults in homeless families, and tend to be younger than 30 with children under age 5. …
Children utilizing the School Breakfast Program tend to be among the most vulnerable, yet some 38% of food insecure children do not participate. The program appears to enhance food security among families at the margin and increases the probability that low-income children will eat breakfast.
The total number of homeless individuals remained relatively stable during this time period, but homelessness increased among families. HUD administration officials point to the current economic crisis as the cause of the rise in homelessness among families.
$1.2 billion will be distributed to more than 500 cities, counties and communities for rent relief, housing relocation and stabilization services, and administrative costs.
New York City homelessness officials are preparing for a surge in homelessness as school lets out. Many families have been staving off homelessness as long as possible so that children could finish the school year.
The number of households receiving food assistance in Michigan grew steadily from 2006 to 2008
America’s Second Harvest network provided emergency food aid for an estimated 1,083,100 different people in Michigan in 2005. Approximately 165,700 different people in Michigan received emergency food assistance in any given week.
The USDA studied communities with limited access to affordable and nutritious food. They found that a relatively small percentage of households lack access to a supermarket or large grocery store: 2.3 million households in the United States (2.2%) live more than a mile from a supermarket and do not have access to a vehicle.
Statistics recently published by the Los Angeles Regional Food Bank reveal that the demand for emergency food assistance continues to increase, up 31 percent in the past year.