There is no single archetype for food insecurity, as it is a complex problem that does not exist in isolation. Low-income families in the United States are particularly susceptible, as food insecurity is often the result of compounding issues such as: low wages, health problems, social isolation, and inadequate housing (Hunger & Health, 2018). The issue only heightens when looking at single-parent households, particularly ones headed by a female, who make up 80% of all single-parent households (US Census Bureau, 2016).
Research from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) conducted in 2015, found that 30% of households with children headed by a single mother experienced food insecurity within the past twelve months (Coleman-Jensen, Rabbit, Gregory, Singh, 2015). In contrast, children living with married or cohabiting parents experience a significantly lower risk, with only 19% of two-parent households reporting similar difficulty within the same time period (Coleman-Jensen et al., 2015).
Financially, single mothers face a significant burden in providing both an adequate quantity and quality of food for their children. Median income for families led by a single mother in 2016 averaged around $35,400, far below the median average for married couples at $85,300 (National Women’s Law Center, 2016). Consequently, sole female headed households are among the poorest in the United States, with more than one third living in poverty and extremely vulnerable to homelessness as a result (United States Department of Housing and Urban Development, 2016).
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These financial constraints limit the variability of consumer choice for mothers as healthy foods can be more expensive, and have a greater potential for waste compared with non-perishable items. Whereas, refined grains, added sugars, and fats are generally available, inexpensive, and palatable (Aggarwal, Monsivais, Drewnowski, 2012). In order to stretch budgets, nutritious value is often traded for energy dense food in an attempt to maximize calories and combat hunger. This large body of research indicates the need to focus targeted interventions aimed at mitigating food insecurity, to households with children headed by a single mother.
In order to create a tangible impact, partnering with an established federally funded safeguard program like WIC is paramount. WIC, (which stands for Women, Infants, and Children), provides federal grants to states for, “supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children who are found to be at nutritional risk” (USDA 2018). WIC’s impact is vast.
Currently serving more than 7 million women and children across the country, these federal grants have helped improve key health outcomes such as: birth weight, infant mortality, diet quality and nutrition intake, cognitive development, and childhood anemia- just to name a few (Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 2015). While WIC’s services are fairly comprehensive, caseworkers are often overworked. Staff are spread thin, and care is compromised as a result (Marcelo, 2013). Partnering with an organization like WIC that has a wide breadth of services within our scope of work will help consolidate resources and ensure programmatic success, while at the same time working to both streamline and fill the gaps in their current service.
With these target groups in mind, the body of this paper will focus on targeting single mothers in Boston, Massachusetts. Suffolk County, which includes the city of Boston along with Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop, is the smallest county in the state by total area, yet has the largest overall rate of food insecurity at 17% (West, Harper, Kelly, Martinez, McCarthy, Rogowsky, 2014). Additionally, 34% of Suffolk County residents’ median income puts them below 185% of the poverty line (West et al., 2014). These findings highlight a demonstrated need to focus efforts on assisting single mothers in Boston, through partnerships with WIC that target gaps in their current services.
