Food Insecurity
Food insecurity is a lack of consistent access to enough nutritious food to live an active, healthy life. Nutrition programs can identify and address food insecurity among older adults in their local communities.
Briefs
- How Food Insecurity Affects Older Adults— Pre-pandemic report from the University of Michigan
Infographics
- Senior Hunger in the United States— Older adult hunger data from Feeding America
- Community Preventative Services Task Force (CPSTF) Recommendations — Key findings
and results of the review - Reducing Malnutrition Through Senior Meal Programs — Features the CPSTF recommendation for home-delivered and congregate meal services
Tools & Toolkits
- Eat Healthy on a Budget— Tip sheet from USDA
- Eat Right When Money's Tight— Tips from USDA to shop smarter with rising food costs
- Eating on a Budget — Tips for consumers to eat healthy on a budget
- Eating Well: Farmers' Market Recipes— Recipe book from the Ohio Department of Aging (available in multiple languages)
- Farmers' Market Tips and Tricks — Making the most of shopping at the farmer's market
- Federal Programs to Sustain Nutrition for At-Risk Individuals— ASPR.gov information
- Finding Food for Older Adults — Quick guide to food programs for older adults
- Food Insecurity and Health— Resource from NQF and Humana on health care-based interventions to overcome food insecurity
- Food Banks and Food Pantries — Comparison of the two, along with tips for finding resources
- Grocery Budget Calculator— Tool from Iowa State University
- Healthier You with Community Gardens — Benefits of Community Gardens
- Healthy, Thrifty, Holiday Menus— Recipe ideas from USDA for holidays throughout the year
- How to Communicate with Older Adults about Food Insecurity and Hunger— Resource from Baylor University
- Kitchen Time Savers— Tip sheet from USDA
- Seasonal Produce Guide— SNAP-Ed guide to when various produce is in season
- Shop Smart— Tips from MyPlate on buying budget-friendly and healthy options from each food group
Presentations
- Expanded Food Insecurity Screener & Food Insecurity Assessment Tools (YouTube) — Development and use of food insecurity screening tools
- ACL Food Insecurity Webinar Series
- Links Between Food Insecurity, Nutrition, and Mental health: Impacts on Healthy Aging and Community-based Resources and Services That Can Help— ICAA Webinar
- Combating Food Insecurity with Collaboration (YouTube) — Webinar from ACL
- Iowa Stops Hunger Video Library— Call to action to fight food insecurity in Iowa
- Food Insecurity and Malnutrition (YouTube)— Defines malnutrition and food insecurity; identifies root causes of and innovative approaches to combating malnutrition; and discusses the importance of partnerships
- Make Your Mark on Food Insecurity — Highlights two programs using innovative methods to fight food insecurity.
- Nutrition Security Webinars— Discussions about nutrition security during and beyond the pandemic from NIFA
Reports
- How Food Insecurity Affects Older Adults— University of Michigan Institute for Healthcare Policy and Innovation report
- Not Enough to Eat: COVID-19 Deepens America’s Hunger Crisis— Food Research & Action Center report
- Addressing Food Insecurity in the United States During and After the COVID-19 Pandemic— Journal of Food Law & Policy paper
- The State of Senior Hunger in America in 2021 — Annual report from Feeding America that examines food insecurity rates among Americans age 60 and older
- Improving Food and Nutrition Security During COVID-19, the Economic Recovery, and Beyond— Report from the Bipartisan Policy Center
- Hunger, Poverty, and Health Disparities During COVID-19 and the Federal Nutrition Programs’ Role in an Equitable Recovery— Report from FRAC
- The Health Consequences of Senior Hunger in the United States— Evidence from the 1999-2016 NHANES
- Household Food Security in the United States in 2019— Report from USDA
- Hunger in Older Adults— Report from MOWA on challenges and opportunities for the aging network
- Poverty, Hunger, Health, and the Federal Nutrition Programs— A profile of the Southern region from FRAC
- Role of the Federal Nutrition Safety Net— Article from the Journal of Food Law & Policy