Family Structure, Food Insecurity, and the Well-Being of Children and Adults in Low-Income Households

Susan D. Stewart, Iowa State University
Steven Garasky, Iowa State University

One in three low-income households in the U.S. is food insecure, meaning that the members of the household do not always have access to enough food for active, healthy living. Although it is well-known that food insecurity is higher in single mother households, much less is known about food insecurity in other family structures that are increasingly represented among low-income households. In addition, studies consistently find food insecurity to be associated with negative child and adult outcomes, but researchers have not examined this relationship in different family contexts. Drawing upon low-income households from the 2002 National Survey of America's Families, we (1) ascertain the relationship between family structure and food insecurity, and (2) establish the relationship between food insecurity and child and adult well-being across different family structures.