CHC

 "To eliminate public health problems arising from childhood hunger"

In this issue
Letter from Childhood Hunger Coalition chair
Childhood Hunger Coalition update
News and notes
Research on the impacts of food insecurity
Research on child nutrition programs
Stories from the field: addressing hunger in the clinical setting
Letter from the chair: CHC moving forward on strategic plan goals 
Molly
Molly Haynes, the chair of the Childhood Hunger Coalition, works in Community Benefit at Kaiser Permanente
In December 2011, the Childhood Hunger Coalition adopted a multi-year strategic plan. The three main goals in the plan reflect the areas in which the coalition would like to grow--research and education, advocacy and organizational development. Since then, the coalition has been working to implement objectives in each of these areas and has been making great progress:
  • The coalition has expanded its work around promoting best practices for childhood hunger screening and intervention. Recently, the coalition was awarded a grant to test the feasibility of identifying and addressing hunger in the clinical setting, and coalition members published an article evaluating health care providers' attention to food insecurity (more information about this work can be found in the ). These developments have been coalition priorities for the last few years and CHC is excited to expand its work in this way.
  • The coalition has also been making efforts to develop policy priorities around nutrition and public health in state and federal policy disucssions. With both health and education reform underway in Oregon, we have a significant opportunity to help make the link between hunger, health, and learning. As these efforts get underway, we will share more about our work in this area. We plan to have an update in our fall digest.
  • Finally, CHC is looking to expand and broaden its coalition through engaging with stakeholders and organizations working on the intersection of hunger and public health. There are opportunities for individuals to join the coalition, participate in one of our work groups or provide advice or guidance on specific projects. If you are interested in finding out more, please email [email protected].  

As you can see, CHC has been busy! We will continue to share updates about our work on our website and through this digest, so stay tuned! For more information, please email [email protected].

  

Childhood Hunger Coalition Update
CHC "screen and intervene" pilot moves forward
doctorOregon Food Bank, on behalf of the Childhood Hunger Coalition, recently received a grant from the ConAgra Foods Foundation Community Impact Grants program. The grant will support a partnership with Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) to test the feasibility of screening and addressing hunger at OHSU's Doernbecher Children's Hospital. The grant-funded project will be completed by June 2013. 

 

This project is expected to reveal whether a screening and intervention model can improve food security status, result in more families enrolled in food assistance programs, and whether families and providers find this model satisfactory and feasible in a health care setting.  "Developing a successful model is an important step in engaging health care providers in the fight against hunger and enlisting them as effective messengers about food assistance and healthy eating programs", says the CHC's Dr. Elizabeth Adams, an assistant professor at OHSU and principal investigator for the pilot.
  
Surveys of health care providers in Oregon show that health care professionals are willing to refer at-risk families to food assistance, but continue to face time constaints and other barriers. The pilot aims to address these barriers by developing best practices for food insecurity screening and intervention.
   
The pilot is in the initial stages of finalizing research tools and protocol in anticipation of screening families for food insecurity, which is expected to begin in early September. Stay tuned for more updates on the pilot in this digest.
  
CHC members publish study on health care providers screening for childhood food insecurity
CHC members Anne Hoisington, Dana Hargunani, Elizabeth Adams and Cheryl Alto authored a study with Oregon State University Professor Mark Braverman on the extent to which health care providers monitor food insecurity in households with children. The study, which analyzed responses from 186 providers, found that while most providers did not routinely inquire about food insecurity, nearly 90 percent indicated their willingness to use screening questions if provided.
 
The study found that the health care providers who do monitor food insecurity tended to be those with more years in practice. The study also looked at distinct barriers to providers asking patients about quality and the quantity of food accessible to them. Providers listed limited time in the clinical visit as the main barrier to inquiring about the nutritional quality of their patients' food. In contrast, however, the main barriers to inquiring about food sufficiency - whether everyone in the family has enough to eat - were discomfort in discussing food insecurity and inadequate knowledge about the topic. This underlines the challenges around discussing food sufficiency in the clinical setting and points to the need for providing information and resources on this topic to the health care community.

 

A link to the study can be found here

For more information about CHC and its activities, email [email protected].
News and notes

The Oregonian reporter honored for work on childhood hunger

The Oregonian columnist David Sarasohn recently received the prestigious Casey Medal for Meritorious Journalism for his reporting on childhood hunger in Oregon. Over four months, Sarasohn covered the devastating reality facing many children here in Oregon. Judges praised his writing for its many "stick in your stomach" lines, bringing home the human face to multiple statistics.

 

For more information and to read his award-winning articles, check out the award announcement.

  

Grant Funds available for At-Risk After School Meal and Snack Program

The Oregon Department of Education Child Nutrition Programs has contracted with Partners for a Hunger-Free Oregon to administer grant funds to cover the start-up costs associated with the At-Risk After School Meal and Snack Program. Funds are available for after school sponsors who are currently operating the program but need help expanding participation. Requests for funds can be up to $10,000 per organization and applications can be submitted from July 1, 2012 through February 29, 2013 or until grant funds have been expended. Visit www.oregonhunger.org/afterschoolgrant for more information and to apply.

   

The Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunity highlights childhood hunger this summer

The Spotlight on Poverty and Opportunityan initiative that brings together diverse perspectives to inform the debate and find genuine solutions to this country's economic issues, has run a 6-part summer series on ending childhood hunger in America. Six major anti-hunger contributors wrote about various childhood hunger issues ranging from the importance of SNAP to the success of food pantries. The full commentaries can be found here

 

Research on the impacts of food insecurity
Researchers are continually working to strengthen their understanding of how food insecurity impacts and is impacted by certain factors across populations. The following articles highlight some of the causes and consequences of food insecurity on specific populations--women and children.

Report focuses on the reasons behind the link between obesity and food insecure women 

Penn State researchers recently explored the correlation between obesity and food insecure mothers. They found that in food insecure households, mothers are more likely to be obese or gain excess weight over time because they give their children the most nutritious food, and end up eating irregularly or skipping meals. As a result, their bodies assume there is food scarcity and begin packing on the pounds to keep in reserve.  


Recent study looks at the effects of food insecurity on elementary school children 

This study explores the relationship between food insecurity, school environment and food infrastructure on elementary school children's body weight, food purchasing decisions and physical activity choices. The study finds that lower risk for food insecurity is correlated with factors such as participation in federal nutrition programs and access to employment and higher wages. The study also finds a positive association between household food insecurity and child body mass index (BMI), but the connection is not consistent across gender and racial groups. The study can be found here.

Research on child nutrition programs
Child nutrition programs, ranging from school lunch and breakfast to after school and summer meal programs, provide children with key nutrients they need to thrive. While some programs such as the free and reduced lunch program are relatively well utilized, summer meals and school breakfasts are less heavily attended. The following articles examine participation in these programs, challenges to increasing participation and offers some prescriptions for making them more successful.

Fewer
 children attending summer nutrition programs in 2011
A report by the Food Research and Action Center found the participation rate for low-income children in summer nutrition programs dropped in 2011 compared to 2010. Budget cuts by school districts and youth services providers have led many states to cut or reduce their summer programs, resulting in fewer children receiving free lunches in the summer. The report also includes steps individuals can take to make sure a similar downward trend does not occur in 2012. 

 

University of North Carolina explores the different effects of free school breakfast enrollment
University of North Carolina recently studied the effects of free school breakfast being reduced from universal eligibility to only low income children. They examined meal participation, attendance and standardized test performance at elementary schools and found reduced meal participation among low income students, an increase in attendance overall, and little change in standardized test scores. 
Stories from the field: addressing hunger in the clinical setting

As the Childhood Hunger Coalition launches its pilot testing the feasibility of screening for food insecurity in the clinical setting, it will continue to track projects and collect research on screening for social determinants of health in clinical settings and other environments where professionals interact with children and families. The following article surveys food security identification and other food related assessments in Head Start programs across the country.   

 

Obesity and Food Insecurity at the Same Table: How Head Start Programs Respond   

This study, administered by Health and Human Services, USDA and Temple University, presents a description of obesity prevention practices in Head Start programs. The researches describe practices in Head Start programs in three areas related to obesity prevention assessing body mass index, addressing food insecurity, and determining children's portion sizes. The surveys, which were  completed by over 1,500 programs, found that in the programs where staff saw children who appeared food insecure, half reported providing food directly to children and families and almost all referred families to food assistance resources. The study finds that Head Start should consider assessing household food security as it requires minimal equipment and little training, is not systemically conducted in other settings, and identifies a condition that can potentially be addressed at Head Start with limited resources.   

Buy your Feast Portland tickets now
Bon Appetit presents Feast Portland: A Celebration of Oregon's Bounty. This first annual event celebrate the amazing and diverse foods found in Oregon from marionberries to Dungeness crabs all while raising funds to help end childhood hunger in Oregon. 
 
The event is being held from September 20-23 at the Pioneer Courthouse Square. Tickets and more information can be found at their website.