"The recession has subsided for most Americans but it still hasn’t subsided for low-income Americans. Their situation just has not improved,” he said, adding that it was “probably worse now” because a temporary funding boost in 2009 to the key government food aid program known as SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program) was allowed to lapse by Congress last year."
Do you find this article to be true where you live?
There are certainly hungry families here in North Texas.
More:
Despite proclamations that the "economy is improving" and that "unemployment is down," one thing is evident and that is - for a number of reasons - food costs are soaring, and as they do, those most vulnerable, like the poor, the elderly and those earning the lowest wages, are being hurt the most.
I don't know anyone personally that I know for sure to be struggling, but I imagine here in New England, after an exceptionally long and bitter winter (even for here), families who struggled hard with heating costs are seeing little relief now that spring is here as groceries keep climbing.
In Florida, our governor does not support any legislation to help the poor. He headed the movement to limit unemployment to 16 weeks and has refused Federal grant money. He is much like the Texas governor and believes "the poor" have plenty of opportunity.
I'm certain people are suffering from hunger in this country. It makes me sick. Our local churches have food banks but the community, and certainly our state, could do much more to help.
There are people here in AR. struggling recession not over high food prices high utilities not lot of jobs.But thank God It is better then it was 3or 4 years ago.
If the recession didn't get you, the inflation will! Food prices are rising so much, we're pinching pennies and changing how we eat. I'm thinking a lot about our food choices. I can't say we're "struggling" and it is obvious that we're not starving, but food costs are a serious matter of concern right now.
This article raises a LOT of red flags. They mention the woman is receiving child support for only 2 of her 4 children, where is/are the father(s) of the other two children? They mention that two of the kids bring home food backpacks every weekend, but neglect to mention that being on SNAP AUTOMATICALLY qualifies the school-children for free school breakfast AND lunch... so that food money only has to cover their dinners and weekend food. They do not say whether she is collecting WIC for the 3 year old, but she would qualify in any state I've ever heard of. And then there's her comments that she's limiting herself to "one meal per day so the children can eat." The pictures show her to be an obese woman, so I have trouble accepting that she is starving herself for the children.
The only "poor" family I have clear vision on is my sister's family, and I can tell you point-blank that a lot of their troubles are self-inflicted.
I *DO* believe that there are families that legitimately need help, I just think this article was not a good example.
I agree, she is a bad example. To boot she's not looking for a job.
I just want my kids to be fed," said Grimes, 38, of Lincoln, Neb., who suffers from chronic back problems, arthritis and muscle pain that make it difficult for her to stand. She is applying for disability.
There is no way she is starving herself & it's a slap in the face to mothers that REALLY are skipping meals so their kids can eat first.
Our area has had people who struggle to feed their families since before the recession. Our church collects for the local food pantry. 4-H, the town grocery, and dollar store do as well.
The prices of beef and pork have gone way up here. We'll be eating more pasta and chicken until they go down again.
Deuteronomy 15:11
There will always be poor people in the land. Therefore I command you to be openhanded toward your fellow Israelites who are poor and needy in your land.
Mark 14:7
The poor you will always have with you, and you can help them any time you want. But you will not always have me.
Our local food pantry has been extremely busy. . . but more from people who have recently been released from prison (they have released lots of drug related inmates, and other non-violent offenses, due to over crowding).
Why is it just because she is large people think that she isn't skipping meals to feed her kids? I am large and I also tend to get less than everyone else due to how much food I make. Husband and kids come first then I get my plate. Also when you skip meals your body tends to go into starvation mode and makes you gain more weight.
Also there school may not have a breakfast program. With 2 younger kids she has to feed them 3 times a day, if the school doesn't have the breakfast program then she will have to feed them at home.
With the school nutrition deal going on they don't get hardly any food anymore. With 2-4 chicken nuggets being the serving size for teenage kids they will come home starving!
Our area pantrys are always busy. They were also busy before the recession. Our area is very heavy in service industry's for the majority of the job sector.Don't get me wrong their are great jobs but fir ever great job their are a ton of $7.25 and no benefit jobs. I volunteered at one pantry for a very long time. Many people felt compelled to share what had landed them there. A few were lazy but most had circumstances beyond their control at that time be it illness, a handicap, job loss etc.
.
My kids also each had a friend that had a very hard time getting enough to eat. It was heartbreaking though one can feed them you can make their lives easy like kids should be.
I also personally would NOT judge that heavy mom saying she eats 1 meal a day. Do we know she didn't previously weight a lot more or have a glandular problem? My heart hurts for parents that can't feed their kids. However it hurts a heck of a lot more for the kids. No kids should suffer hunger or worry about getting to eat. I am always going to be ok with feeding people.
I thought 'liar' as well when I saw her size, but then it occurred to me that one an extremely limited food budget might be eating little, but of very poor quality and little nutrition, which could lead to such an unhealthy appearance. No one knows but her. We could speculate all day, but it's really her business, not ours.
Well...the articles stirred me to service...so I looked up my city food pantry and lo and behold it is a couple streets over from my house...so I am going to look into volunteering a couple times a month.
With volunteering at Sophia's school I see the unfed kids...the ones that come in for the breakfast program...I would like it if our school gave a backpack of food on Fridays...I may ask about it at the next parent counsel meeting.
I was involved in a discussion a few weeks ago regarding a news report that Mississippi is the hungriest state. Lots got in on the discussion. People said that there is no reason for a person or family to be starving in thus country. I pointed out that there is a difference between hunger and starving. While there may not be a lot of starvation like what is in other countries. I do believe there is a lot of hunger in this country.
hunger is not only found in the inner cities, or the poor small towns, it is also in middle class areas and in every state. A persons size has nothing to do with whether he or she is hungry. A very thin person may cone across as not getting enough to eat, have an eating disorder, have some sort if illness, may be a substance abuse (alcohol or drugs). A very heavy person could come across as constantly eating, no limits, eats everything in sight. The problem with both of these examples is the assumptions that we make about them. Thyroid can cause a person to gain or lose, no matter how little or how much one eats, I've known addicts that will eat anything and everything and still barely weigh 100 pounds.
the problem is that the cost of food is high, no matter where you live. It costs more to eat a healthy well balanced diet than it does to fill up on prepackaged foods. People think that if someone lives in a rural setting they can grow a garden, maybe raise a few chickens. That's not always so. Most people don't know how to garden and others think its too much work. People are so removed from where there food comes from they won't eat a fresh egg because it came out of that chicken. Eggs are not grown in styrofoam containers.
many people don't even know how to cook. How many are actually willing to make a scratch pizza or cook a bowl of oatmeal. There are things that many of us learned from our parents and grandparents. We are the lucky ones. We are even luckier if we use the lessons we were taught and then pass them on.
don't be so quick to judge, we don't know everyone's situation. I do think its a darn shame that it costs more for a gallon of milk in some places than it does for a xanax prescription. Maybe we need more community gardens, home ec back in the schools. There's not a single answer or solution to this problem. I think with the way the economy is heading, drought, etc things are going to get worse.
The mom in question here may have already lost a lot of weight from having to cut back her food intake. We have no way of knowing what she weighed before. And guess what will happen when she is able to go back to eating normally? She'll gain it back very fast because her metabolism has dropped from eating way too little.
I don't know if she said how much she got in food stamps, but about 10 years ago we got $150 for a family of three, and with an income of less than 1000$ a month after taxes (usually closer to 800) we had to make that stretch for the entire month most of the time. Food stamp allowances are currently the same as they were then. They went up for a little while, but that has now expired. It was hard to feed three people on $150 a month back then. I don't know if I could even do it now.
I don't know if she said how much she got in food stamps, but about 10 years ago we got $150 for a family of three, and with an income of less than 1000$ a month after taxes (usually closer to 800)
I know families of 5 who are receiving 798.00 a month in food stamps. That is two parents and three kids. Each family has 1 adult working part time. One family pays no rent or mortgage but does pay for electric, cell phone, cable, they heat with wood but get a fuel assistance check.
other family, pays 50.00 rent, electric, no cable, had cell phone, and gets electric assistance.
the family paying rent also receives wic for two of the three kids.
I was the one to point out her obesity, so I will clarify my comment. She may not be eating "healthfully" and she is certainly not eating organic and all that, she may even be "hungry" all day and then filling up on high-calorie, low-nutrition "cheap" food when she does eat. But she clearly is receiving sufficient calories.
To whichever PP is was who said it, what state/county do you live in that the schools don't have school breakfast? I've never heard of that. School lunch programs are funded at the federal level through the USDA.
I was the one to point out her obesity, so I will clarify my comment. She may not be eating "healthfully" and she is certainly not eating organic and all that, she may even be "hungry" all day and then filling up on high-calorie, low-nutrition "cheap" food when she does eat. But she clearly is receiving sufficient calories.
I mentioned it as well... just wanted to include some facts.
Some have mentioned she could be in starvation mode (formally known as famine response) that is 100% not the case. Starvation takes quite a bit of time of complete fasting or SEVERE calorie restriction. Actually an obese person will burn fat before tissue & muscle. Starvation mode does slow down the metabolism, but if you are eating so little that starvation mode has set in, you are not going to gain weight.
According to the above chart, if she is a family of 5 (herself and 4 children) and she only gets $500 a month in child support, she would receive the maximum in food stamps of $750 a month. I could feed 5 people on that. It wouldn't be easy given today's food prices but considering the free food her children already receive at school, I could do it.
As for her weight, she has arthritis and I know first hand that some of those meds put on a lot of pounds despite her best efforts.
Think of it this way. People on food stamps get their entire alotment once per month. If they do not get quite enough to last the whole month then near the end of the month they may be eating at a caloric deficit for a week or two, and if it's a large deficit then the metabolism will drop. Then the following month when they get the new food stamp allotment they have plenty of food again, will likely eat more at first because they have been hungry, and because their metabolism is lower during that time period it takes less calories than it should for them to pit on weight. Even if they only wind up with a net gain of 1 lb per month, that's nearly 50 lbs over a five year period. It is easy for me to see why food insecurity would lead to weight gain. I was a lot heavier when we were very poor, whether we were getting food stamps or not, than I am now. And I certainly do not diet or count calories now, but I do not ever have periods where there is not enough to eat. I eat the same amounts consistently.
Unfortunately, we as a Country are pretty much uneducated in nutrition. I've seen way too many adults feeding their children carb overloaded diets with inadequate amounts of micronutrients, healthy fat, and protein. Our schools might be giving out free meals, but they fall short on giving out classes in nutrition.
I agree. I also wish they would bring back Home Ec in schools and teach kids how to cook WITH VEGGIES!!
As well as how to sew and frugally manage a household.
"While it may seem counterintuitive, food insecurity and obesity can co-exist in the same
individual, family, or community. The research on whether there is a relationship,
however, provides mixed results.2,3 A number of research studies in the U.S. and
abroad have found positive associations between food insecurity and
overweight/obesity.4,5 Other studies have found no relationship, or even a lower risk of
obesity, with food insecurity.6,7
Overall, the strongest and most consistent evidence is for a higher risk of
overweight/obesity among food insecure women.8,9 Although the research for children
is not as consistent as it is for women, several studies do find a significant association
between food insecurity and overweight/obesity among children.10,11"
Here is the source but it is pdf. so I am not sure everyone will be able to access it
The food pantry for donations from a church I was affiliated with is an indication of how America eats. It never lacked processed, sugary cereal, white bread, white rice, and fruit juice that was mostly corn syrup. It never seemed to get donations of slow-cook oats, whole wheat bread, brown rice, nut butters or beans. There were people who donated every week and loaded the place with frosted flakes and other high-priced processed foods that lacked micronutrients.
We have to face it that our taste buds in America have a great impact on what we eat. We have been trained to crave sugar and salty snacks. That craving is not in our genetic makeup any more than smoking is. It comes from the food manufacturers who load our food with "tastes" that keep us coming back.
The food pantry to which I refer could have easily stocked up with apples, brown rice, black beans, and oats. The congregation was upper middle class. But they brought in what THEY ate and what THEY thought tasted good.
We have to face it that our taste buds in America have a great impact on what we eat. We have been trained to crave sugar and salty snacks. That craving is not in our genetic makeup any more than smoking is. It comes from the food manufacturers who load our food with "tastes" that keep us coming back.
EXACTLY! Cheetos are designed to melt in your mouth so that little makes it to your stomach to make you feel full. Because they don't make it to your stomach you eat more and more. Makes me wonder how many other "foods" are designed this way.
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