C-SNAP Investigators Speak at The 2007 National Anti-Hunger Policy Conference in Washington, D.C.
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| 2/28/2007 |
C-SNAP Investigators from Boston and Philadelphia gave a plenary session entitled, "Hunger as a Health Issue, Hunger as a Learning Issue" at the 2007 National Anti-Hunger Policy Conference in Washington, D.C. on February 26th.
Dr. Frank, the Principal Investigator for C-SNAP in Boston, spoke first about food insecurity and its clinical effects across the lifespan. The cost of services that the government provides to a child, Dr. Frank explained, is inversely proportional to the food security of that household. She explained that all of society benefits from the reduction of failure to thrive and lauded efforts to boost the WIC program.
Dr. Chilton, Principal Investigator of The Philadelphia GROW Project, and Co-Principal Investigator of the C-SNAP study in Philadelphia, discussed the disparities between families of different ethnic/racial backgrounds. Dr. Chilton presented evidence that shows minority families are far more at risk for food insecurity, and reminded the audience of the civil rights implications of these longitunidal disparities in child hunger and poor health. Dr. John Cook, Co-Investigator at Boston, discussed LIHEAP and the ‘heat or eat’ phenomenon. He explained that families are often forced to choose between heating their place of residence or providing sustenance. Dr. Cook showed data that suggests low income families who receive subsidies for heating are more likely to be in better health.
Finally, Stephanie Ettinger de Cuba, MPH explained how these research results can inform the upcoming reauthorization of the Farm Bill, to give it a strong nutrition title. A large proportion of the Farm Bill addresses funding for Food Stamps, the largest anti-hunger and nutrition program in the United States. To read an extract of their presentation, click here.
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