Hunger in America

As a dietitian, I usually help people figure out how to less. 

Today, I am asking you to help people to eat more.  Hunger and food insecurity remain persistent yet largely invisible in this country.  One way that millions of low-income people are a little bit less hungry is through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which most people know by the old term “Food Stamps.”  Another valuable hunger-alleviating program is the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, which is also better known as “WIC.”  These two valuable programs are funded through the Farm Bill, which is currently being debated in Congress.  Both programs are being targeted for drastic cuts, which will lead to far more hunger among children, seniors, disabled, and other low-income people.  You may be one of the millions of Americans who relies on these benefits to keep food on your table.  Your neighbors or co-workers might be beneficiaries, too.  Maybe you received food stamps or WIC when you hit a rough patch financially.  Or, maybe you were too proud to apply for these benefits but suffered mightily without them. 

The causes of poverty and the intricacies of agricultural policies in this country are too complex to debate here, but what is clear is that shrinking food assistance programs will not improve the nutritional status of our country.  There will always be people who collect such benefits when they don’t really need them, but I believe that it’s more important to help the vast majority of people who do need help than to restrict the program for everyone.  Paul Krugman, a Nobel laureate, makes the case for maintaining — or even increasing — nutrition assistance more eloquently than I do. 

Please take a few minutes to contact your elected representatives and ask them not to decrease funding for food stamps and WIC.  You can find how to contact your representatives and senators through this link.