A Descriptive Analysis of Food Insecurity in the U.S.

Food insecurity continues to be a major global problem. More than 50 million Americans are considered food insecure. While food insecurity affects everyone, those most impacted by food insecurity are African Americans and Hispanics. Additionally, single headed households with children are food insecure. There are several negative effects that are associated with food insecurity. These include premature births among expecting mothers, low birth weights, and depression. Among adults, food insecurity is associated with anxiety, obesity, cognitive problems, and many other issues as well. This study used FoodAPS data to analyze the association between food insecurity and race. We also use an ordinary least square method to analyze the factors associated with food insecurity among different age groups of people. Finally, we estimate how government programs such as SNAP affects food insecurity in the U.S. Our results indicate that food insecurity was more prevalent among female-headed households than male headed households. Additionally, we found that food insecurity is highly prevalent among older adults and this was higher among blacks compared with Hispanics. Education decreased the likelihood for a person to be food insecure