Website eases application process for SNAP, formerly food stamps, and promotes healthy food

With a federal grant, the state Department for Community Based Services has launched a customer service website to promote healthy foods by assisting the families receiving food benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly called food stamps.

The portal allows people to check their eligibility for SNAP and apply for benefits with a shorter application that will be followed by a DCBS interview. They can also check their benefit status, report changes and receive electronic notices.

The agency says an online application eliminates any transportation issues a family may have with visiting a DCBS office, and encourages applications. “Modern improvements like this make it easier for families to apply for benefits and ultimately increase access to healthy food,” said Audrey Haynes, secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, which houses DCBS.

“SNAP helps people of all ages afford healthy food,” said DCBS Commissioner Teresa James. “For some of our DCBS customers, it means the difference between having a family meal or nothing at all. This website makes applying for benefits, making updates or accessing information even easier since customers don’t have to make an office appointment or even pick up the phone to get help.”

Since the portal’s launch on March 11, DCBS has received more than 1,000 electronic applications. Click here to learn more about SNAP. 

With a federal grant, the state Department for Community Based Services has launched a customer service website to promote healthy foods by assisting the families receiving food benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formerly called food stamps.

The portal allows people to check their eligibility for SNAP and apply for benefits with a shorter application that will be followed by a DCBS interview. They can also check their benefit status, report changes and receive electronic notices.

The agency says an online application eliminates any transportation issues a family may have with visiting a DCBS office, and encourages applications. “Modern improvements like this make it easier for families to apply for benefits and ultimately increase access to healthy food,” said Audrey Haynes, secretary of the Cabinet for Health and Family Services, which houses DCBS.

“SNAP helps people of all ages afford healthy food,” said DCBS Commissioner Teresa James. “For some of our DCBS customers, it means the difference between having a family meal or nothing at all. This website makes applying for benefits, making updates or accessing information even easier since customers don’t have to make an office appointment or even pick up the phone to get help.”

Since the portal’s launch on March 11, DCBS has received more than 1,000 electronic applications. Click here to learn more about SNAP. 

Read More

W. Va. plans private-public model to provide school breakfast, improve child health, fight obesity; could this approach help Ky.?

By Molly Burchett
Kentucky Health News

Breakfast has been said to be the most important meal of the day, and it can be important in fighting obesity. Policymakers in West Virginia are pushing for breakfast food programs in schools through public-private partnerships, and a new report says similar programs could save $41 billion in federal dollars long-term by preventing obesity. Does this make sense, and does it make sense for Kentucky?

Like West Virginia, Kentucky has a high obesity rate among middle and high school students but has many children who don't always get the food they need to live a healthy life. Kentucky ranks fourth highest in food insecurity among children because 23 percent of Kentucky's children do not always know where they will find their next meal, according to Feeding America’s "Map the Meal Gap" study. (Here's a link to its interactive map, where you can see food insecurity rates by county in order to find out more about your county. One example appears below; orange dots are headquarters of regional food banks.)

A recent bill passed by West Virginia lawmakers addresses the problems of food insecurity, obesity and education simultaneously and serves as the first example for a statewide public-private funding partnership to improve school meals programs, reports David Gutman of The Associated Press. The bill would also require every county to set up a fund to collect private food donations.

The bill aims to require every school to have breakfast food programs so no student goes without it because of costs, says Gutman. Poor nutrition and diet are sometimes issues of cost and income level since healthy foods can be more expensive than unhealthy ones. For example, a bag of 10 apples may costs $4.99, but a package of Little Debbie oatmeal creme pies could be $1.79. A medium-sized apple has 93 calories and less than 1 gram of fat while an oatmeal creme pie has 318 calories and 13 grams of fat.

What does this have to do with obesity? The research-based logic is that a healthy, daily breakfast improves diet and can replace sugary alternatives such as donuts. Eating a healthy breakfast also improves education by combating hunger and aiding concentration and has been found to be associated with overall health and mental functioning. Overall, these factors may work together to improve education and diet, reports Gutman.

Such a program could help Kentucky address the state's problems related to food insecurity, obesity and education, while generating long-term savings. Similar food programs that provide meals to low-income children could generate as much as $41 billion in long-term federal saving by preventing obesity, says a new report from the Campaign to End Obesity.

The report says that the S-CHIP childhood obesity demonstration project, which combines changes in preventive care with community and school efforts to reduce childhood obesity in low-income communities, could prevent a child from becoming obese, saving an estimated $41,500 for an average female and $30,600 for an average male Medicaid beneficiary, says the report.

Three other programs were highlighted as huge cost-savers because they would prevent obesity and related chronic conditions in the long run, which would reduce health care costs and increase wages, says the report. These include increasing obesity screenings by physicians, bringing the Diabetes Prevention Program to scale and covering certain weight loss drugs under Medicare Part D. Preventive health policies aimed at obesity prevention could significantly reduce government expenditures, could save tax dollars and could improve the overall health of Kentuckians.

Kentucky Health News is an independent news service of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues at the University of Kentucky, with support from the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.

By Molly Burchett
Kentucky Health News

Breakfast has been said to be the most important meal of the day, and it can be important in fighting obesity. Policymakers in West Virginia are pushing for breakfast food programs in schools through public-private partnerships, and a new report says similar programs could save $41 billion in federal dollars long-term by preventing obesity. Does this make sense, and does it make sense for Kentucky?

Like West Virginia, Kentucky has a high obesity rate among middle and high school students but has many children who don't always get the food they need to live a healthy life. Kentucky ranks fourth highest in food insecurity among children because 23 percent of Kentucky's children do not always know where they will find their next meal, according to Feeding America’s "Map the Meal Gap" study. (Here's a link to its interactive map, where you can see food insecurity rates by county in order to find out more about your county. One example appears below; orange dots are headquarters of regional food banks.)

A recent bill passed by West Virginia lawmakers addresses the problems of food insecurity, obesity and education simultaneously and serves as the first example for a statewide public-private funding partnership to improve school meals programs, reports David Gutman of The Associated Press. The bill would also require every county to set up a fund to collect private food donations.

The bill aims to require every school to have breakfast food programs so no student goes without it because of costs, says Gutman. Poor nutrition and diet are sometimes issues of cost and income level since healthy foods can be more expensive than unhealthy ones. For example, a bag of 10 apples may costs $4.99, but a package of Little Debbie oatmeal creme pies could be $1.79. A medium-sized apple has 93 calories and less than 1 gram of fat while an oatmeal creme pie has 318 calories and 13 grams of fat.

What does this have to do with obesity? The research-based logic is that a healthy, daily breakfast improves diet and can replace sugary alternatives such as donuts. Eating a healthy breakfast also improves education by combating hunger and aiding concentration and has been found to be associated with overall health and mental functioning. Overall, these factors may work together to improve education and diet, reports Gutman.

Such a program could help Kentucky address the state's problems related to food insecurity, obesity and education, while generating long-term savings. Similar food programs that provide meals to low-income children could generate as much as $41 billion in long-term federal saving by preventing obesity, says a new report from the Campaign to End Obesity.

The report says that the S-CHIP childhood obesity demonstration project, which combines changes in preventive care with community and school efforts to reduce childhood obesity in low-income communities, could prevent a child from becoming obese, saving an estimated $41,500 for an average female and $30,600 for an average male Medicaid beneficiary, says the report.

Three other programs were highlighted as huge cost-savers because they would prevent obesity and related chronic conditions in the long run, which would reduce health care costs and increase wages, says the report. These include increasing obesity screenings by physicians, bringing the Diabetes Prevention Program to scale and covering certain weight loss drugs under Medicare Part D. Preventive health policies aimed at obesity prevention could significantly reduce government expenditures, could save tax dollars and could improve the overall health of Kentuckians.

Kentucky Health News is an independent news service of the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues at the University of Kentucky, with support from the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.

Read More

Common beliefs about obesity and weight loss found to be myths

Think going to gym class drives weight loss, or that breastfeeding protects a child from obesity? Think again, because these are among seven popular myths about obesity myths, according to an international team of researchers.

The seven popular but largely inaccurate beliefs, which lead to poor policy decisions, inaccurate public-health recommendations and wasted resources, were identified by the team led by David Allison, associate dean for science in the School of Public Health at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Here are the seven myths:

• Myth 1: Small, sustained changes in how many calories we take in or burn will accumulate to produce large weight changes over the long term.
Fact: Small changes in calorie intake or expenditure do not accumulate indefinitely. Changes in body mass eventually cancel out the change in calorie intake or burning.

• Myth 2: Setting realistic goals in obesity treatment is important. Otherwise, patients become frustrated and lose less weight.
Fact: Some data suggest that people do better with more ambitious goals.

• Myth 3: Gradually losing weight is better than quickly losing pounds. Quick weight losses are more likely to be regained.
Fact: People who lose more weight rapidly are more likely to weigh less, even after several years.

• Myth 4: Patients who feel “ready” to lose weight are more likely to make the required lifestyle changes, do health-care professionals need to measure each patient’s diet readiness.
Fact: Among those who seek weight-loss treatment, evidence suggests that assessing readiness neither predicts weight loss nor helps to make it happen.

• Myth 5: Physical-education classes, in their current form, play an important role in reducing and preventing childhood obesity.
Fact: Physical education, as typically provided, does not appear to counter obesity.

• Myth 6: Breastfeeding protects children against future obesity.
Fact: Breastfeeding has many benefits for mother and child, but the data do not show that it protects against obesity.

• Myth 7: One episode of sex can burn up to 300 Kcals per person.
Fact: It may be closer to one-twentieth of that on average, and not much more than sitting on the couch.

The research team also defined six “presumptions" that are generally held to be true even though more studies are needed before conclusions can be drawn, such as the idea that regularly eating versus skipping breakfast contributes to weight loss. Studies show it has no effect.

The same goes for the idea that eating vegetables by itself brings about weight loss, or that snacking packs on the pounds. According to Allison and colleagues, these hypotheses have not been shown to be true, and some data suggest they may be false.

The researchers also identified nine research-proven facts about weight loss. For example, weight-loss programs for overweight children that involve parents and the child’s home achieve better results than programs that take place solely in schools or other settings.

Also, many studies show that while genetic factors play a large role in obesity, “Heritability is not destiny.” Realistic changes to lifestyle and environment can, on average, bring about as much weight loss as treatment with the most effective weight-loss drugs on the market. (Read more)

Think going to gym class drives weight loss, or that breastfeeding protects a child from obesity? Think again, because these are among seven popular myths about obesity myths, according to an international team of researchers.

The seven popular but largely inaccurate beliefs, which lead to poor policy decisions, inaccurate public-health recommendations and wasted resources, were identified by the team led by David Allison, associate dean for science in the School of Public Health at the University of Alabama at Birmingham.

Here are the seven myths:

• Myth 1: Small, sustained changes in how many calories we take in or burn will accumulate to produce large weight changes over the long term.
Fact: Small changes in calorie intake or expenditure do not accumulate indefinitely. Changes in body mass eventually cancel out the change in calorie intake or burning.

• Myth 2: Setting realistic goals in obesity treatment is important. Otherwise, patients become frustrated and lose less weight.
Fact: Some data suggest that people do better with more ambitious goals.

• Myth 3: Gradually losing weight is better than quickly losing pounds. Quick weight losses are more likely to be regained.
Fact: People who lose more weight rapidly are more likely to weigh less, even after several years.

• Myth 4: Patients who feel “ready” to lose weight are more likely to make the required lifestyle changes, do health-care professionals need to measure each patient’s diet readiness.
Fact: Among those who seek weight-loss treatment, evidence suggests that assessing readiness neither predicts weight loss nor helps to make it happen.

• Myth 5: Physical-education classes, in their current form, play an important role in reducing and preventing childhood obesity.
Fact: Physical education, as typically provided, does not appear to counter obesity.

• Myth 6: Breastfeeding protects children against future obesity.
Fact: Breastfeeding has many benefits for mother and child, but the data do not show that it protects against obesity.

• Myth 7: One episode of sex can burn up to 300 Kcals per person.
Fact: It may be closer to one-twentieth of that on average, and not much more than sitting on the couch.

The research team also defined six “presumptions" that are generally held to be true even though more studies are needed before conclusions can be drawn, such as the idea that regularly eating versus skipping breakfast contributes to weight loss. Studies show it has no effect.

The same goes for the idea that eating vegetables by itself brings about weight loss, or that snacking packs on the pounds. According to Allison and colleagues, these hypotheses have not been shown to be true, and some data suggest they may be false.

The researchers also identified nine research-proven facts about weight loss. For example, weight-loss programs for overweight children that involve parents and the child’s home achieve better results than programs that take place solely in schools or other settings.

Also, many studies show that while genetic factors play a large role in obesity, “Heritability is not destiny.” Realistic changes to lifestyle and environment can, on average, bring about as much weight loss as treatment with the most effective weight-loss drugs on the market. (Read more)

Read More

Many Ky. parents don't realize children are overweight, or won't acknowledge it, but many report kids' poor health behavior

By Al Cross
Kentucky Health News

Many Kentucky parents don't realize that their children are obese or overweight, or at least aren't willing to acknowledge it. That is the obvious conclusion to draw from the latest results of the Kentucky Parent Survey, released Tuesday by the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.

The poll found that only 14 percent of Kentucky parents say their child weighs too much, but the National Survey of Children's Health found that 37 percent of Kentucky children are overweight or obese. Conversely, 76 percent of parents in the poll think their child's weight is about right, but the national survey found that only 58 percent of Kentucky kids have healthy weight.

The Kentucky Parent survey, taken by land-line and cell telephone from July 19 to Aug. 22 by the Center for Survey Research at the University of Virginia, interviewed 1,006 Kentucky parents, step-parents, grandparents, foster parents or other legal guardians of children in Kentucky selected at random. The statistical margin of error for that sample size is plus or minus 3 percentage points.

The poll also found that 56 percent of Kentucky children are watching more than the maximum daily recommended amount of “screen time” – watching television, playing video games or using the Internet – and that 59 percent drink sugar-sweetened beverages every day. Both are major factors in childhood obesity, research has found, and experts recommend no more than two hours of screen time a day and no sugar-sweetened drinks at all.

“Parents can help reduce this risk by encouraging healthy behaviors for their children,” said Dr. Susan Zepeda, president and CEO of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.“Our children’s habits and behaviors impact their health today and shape their quality of life as they grow. When kids eat poorly and don’t get enough physical activity, it increases their risk for obesity, diabetes, heart disease and other chronic diseases. This poll data helps us understand what parents think about the behaviors that are so critical to health.”

The Kentucky Parent Survey also found that only 56 percent of Kentucky parents said their child got "enough" fruits and vegetables every day during the preceding week, and 66 percent of parents reported their child got "enough" physical activity every day during the preceding week. It also found that elementary and high-school students often get less than the recommended amount of sleep per day (chart).

The survey did not define "enough." The foundation noted that one strategy to reduce childhood obesity in Kentucky is "5-2-1-0," reflecting experts' recommendations that each day, children should eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables, have no more than two hours of screen time, engage in one hour of physical activity, and drink zero sugar-sweetened beverages. For the foundation's press release, click here.

By Al Cross
Kentucky Health News

Many Kentucky parents don't realize that their children are obese or overweight, or at least aren't willing to acknowledge it. That is the obvious conclusion to draw from the latest results of the Kentucky Parent Survey, released Tuesday by the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.

The poll found that only 14 percent of Kentucky parents say their child weighs too much, but the National Survey of Children's Health found that 37 percent of Kentucky children are overweight or obese. Conversely, 76 percent of parents in the poll think their child's weight is about right, but the national survey found that only 58 percent of Kentucky kids have healthy weight.

The Kentucky Parent survey, taken by land-line and cell telephone from July 19 to Aug. 22 by the Center for Survey Research at the University of Virginia, interviewed 1,006 Kentucky parents, step-parents, grandparents, foster parents or other legal guardians of children in Kentucky selected at random. The statistical margin of error for that sample size is plus or minus 3 percentage points.

The poll also found that 56 percent of Kentucky children are watching more than the maximum daily recommended amount of “screen time” – watching television, playing video games or using the Internet – and that 59 percent drink sugar-sweetened beverages every day. Both are major factors in childhood obesity, research has found, and experts recommend no more than two hours of screen time a day and no sugar-sweetened drinks at all.

“Parents can help reduce this risk by encouraging healthy behaviors for their children,” said Dr. Susan Zepeda, president and CEO of the Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky.“Our children’s habits and behaviors impact their health today and shape their quality of life as they grow. When kids eat poorly and don’t get enough physical activity, it increases their risk for obesity, diabetes, heart disease and other chronic diseases. This poll data helps us understand what parents think about the behaviors that are so critical to health.”

The Kentucky Parent Survey also found that only 56 percent of Kentucky parents said their child got "enough" fruits and vegetables every day during the preceding week, and 66 percent of parents reported their child got "enough" physical activity every day during the preceding week. It also found that elementary and high-school students often get less than the recommended amount of sleep per day (chart).

The survey did not define "enough." The foundation noted that one strategy to reduce childhood obesity in Kentucky is "5-2-1-0," reflecting experts' recommendations that each day, children should eat at least five servings of fruits and vegetables, have no more than two hours of screen time, engage in one hour of physical activity, and drink zero sugar-sweetened beverages. For the foundation's press release, click here.

Read More

Obesity alert study: Portion size labels can be deliberately confusing and consumers are easily, even willingly, fooled

Yikes! According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the "large" soda you order today is about six times as large as the one you ordered 60 years ago. "Food sizes have become larger over time," says Aradhna Krishna, a University of Michigan marketing professor who has been looking into portion size and perception. "So, that same hamburger has become bigger, the french fries have become bigger, and again this is leading to obesity."

Thinking a lot about this, Krishna tried an experiment. She gave people cookies that were labeled either medium or large, and then measured how much they ate. "The catch? The cookies were identical in size, What happened? You guessed it," reports NPR's Helen Thompson and Shanikar Vedantam. "People ate more cookies when they were labeled 'medium.' Rather than trust what their stomachs were telling them, in other words, people went by the label." It gets worse: "(They) think they've not eaten as much," says Krishna.

The researcher said women have known all about this principle for awhile, because it's what's been happening with sizes of clothing. It's something called "vanity sizing."  "What used to be a size 8 in the 1950s has become a size 4 in the 1970s and a zero in 2006," Krishna said. It makes you feel better about yourself and your body image. The real question, she asks, is how much do we want to be lied to or, indeed, how much do we lie to ourselves? (Read more)

Yikes! According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the "large" soda you order today is about six times as large as the one you ordered 60 years ago. "Food sizes have become larger over time," says Aradhna Krishna, a University of Michigan marketing professor who has been looking into portion size and perception. "So, that same hamburger has become bigger, the french fries have become bigger, and again this is leading to obesity."

Thinking a lot about this, Krishna tried an experiment. She gave people cookies that were labeled either medium or large, and then measured how much they ate. "The catch? The cookies were identical in size, What happened? You guessed it," reports NPR's Helen Thompson and Shanikar Vedantam. "People ate more cookies when they were labeled 'medium.' Rather than trust what their stomachs were telling them, in other words, people went by the label." It gets worse: "(They) think they've not eaten as much," says Krishna.

The researcher said women have known all about this principle for awhile, because it's what's been happening with sizes of clothing. It's something called "vanity sizing."  "What used to be a size 8 in the 1950s has become a size 4 in the 1970s and a zero in 2006," Krishna said. It makes you feel better about yourself and your body image. The real question, she asks, is how much do we want to be lied to or, indeed, how much do we lie to ourselves? (Read more)

Read More

Walmart, Humana to give discount on healthier grocery choices like veggies, fruit, lean meat, skim milk, certain packaged goods

Starting Oct. 15, more than 1 million members of Humana Inc.'s Healthy Rewards program will start getting a 5 percent credit on about 1,300 healthy food items at all U.S. Walmart stores.  The credit can be used against future purchases at Walmart, which is the largest U.S. food retailer.

Walmart has taken note that "one of the biggest barriers to healthy nutrition is cost," Dr. John Agwunobi, president of health and wellness at Walmart, told Reuters. His company, he said, is trying an overall approach to improve the nutritional value of the food it sells. And because food accounts for more than half of Walmart's annual sales, and since it has tremendous clout in the U.S. market, the hope is that changes at its stores can influence other supermarket chains to do more about healthy eating.

Walmart products eligible for the credit include fresh fruits, vegetables, lean cuts of meat, skim milk, brown rice and packaged goods, the company told Reuters. The program works with a HumanaVitality card provided to members of Humana's rewards unit who receive points for meeting health goals. (Read more)

Starting Oct. 15, more than 1 million members of Humana Inc.'s Healthy Rewards program will start getting a 5 percent credit on about 1,300 healthy food items at all U.S. Walmart stores.  The credit can be used against future purchases at Walmart, which is the largest U.S. food retailer.

Walmart has taken note that "one of the biggest barriers to healthy nutrition is cost," Dr. John Agwunobi, president of health and wellness at Walmart, told Reuters. His company, he said, is trying an overall approach to improve the nutritional value of the food it sells. And because food accounts for more than half of Walmart's annual sales, and since it has tremendous clout in the U.S. market, the hope is that changes at its stores can influence other supermarket chains to do more about healthy eating.

Walmart products eligible for the credit include fresh fruits, vegetables, lean cuts of meat, skim milk, brown rice and packaged goods, the company told Reuters. The program works with a HumanaVitality card provided to members of Humana's rewards unit who receive points for meeting health goals. (Read more)

Read More

Volunteer State becoming Salad State? CDC report shows Tennessee is getting less obese, leaving U.S.'s top 10

It can be done. A determined state can move the needle on its obesity numbers. Heidi Hall of The Tennessean reports that widespread efforts to change Tennesseans’ diet and exercise habits mean that the state’s percentage of obese residents have dropped for two consecutive years – something that hasn’t happened in more than a decade. "A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention moves Tennessee out of the top 10 most obese states for the first time since 1999 – it’s now ranked 15th – and," Hall notes, "is prompting cautious optimism in leaders charged with slimming down the state." (Associated Press photo)

The question, writes Hall, is what pellets of the state's shotgun approach are working. In a state that added bike lanes and sidewalks, altered its school lunches, and added fresh produce to convenience stores, where should credit go? “I think the biggest success is that we increased awareness around the issue,” said Ted Cornelius, the Tennessee Obesity Task Force’s co-chair. “We have the capacity to analyze barriers people face -- cost, access to healthy food and places to be active -- and we keep bringing those up to leaders in communities.”

The percentage of Tennesseans considered obese peaked at 32.9 percent in 2009 and dropped to 29.2 percent last year. Rural areas lead the drop, moving from 70.7 percent overweight in 2009 to 64.7 percent last year, but Schlundt said it may not be time to celebrate just yet. Rural residents took a similar jump upward from 2005-06, and both could be anomalies because the CDC surveyed fewer rural residents. (Read more)

It can be done. A determined state can move the needle on its obesity numbers. Heidi Hall of The Tennessean reports that widespread efforts to change Tennesseans’ diet and exercise habits mean that the state’s percentage of obese residents have dropped for two consecutive years – something that hasn’t happened in more than a decade. "A new report from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention moves Tennessee out of the top 10 most obese states for the first time since 1999 – it’s now ranked 15th – and," Hall notes, "is prompting cautious optimism in leaders charged with slimming down the state." (Associated Press photo)

The question, writes Hall, is what pellets of the state's shotgun approach are working. In a state that added bike lanes and sidewalks, altered its school lunches, and added fresh produce to convenience stores, where should credit go? “I think the biggest success is that we increased awareness around the issue,” said Ted Cornelius, the Tennessee Obesity Task Force’s co-chair. “We have the capacity to analyze barriers people face -- cost, access to healthy food and places to be active -- and we keep bringing those up to leaders in communities.”

The percentage of Tennesseans considered obese peaked at 32.9 percent in 2009 and dropped to 29.2 percent last year. Rural areas lead the drop, moving from 70.7 percent overweight in 2009 to 64.7 percent last year, but Schlundt said it may not be time to celebrate just yet. Rural residents took a similar jump upward from 2005-06, and both could be anomalies because the CDC surveyed fewer rural residents. (Read more)

Read More

Is there a correlation between food-stamp use and obesity? Some say yes, and that corporations are getting fat in the process

"Who's getting fat off food stamps?" asks ABC News' Alan Farnham, reporting that a record number of Americans -- 46.7 million, or nearly 1 in 7 -- now uses the benefit, known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. It cost $72 billion last year, up from $30 billion four years earlier. Budget hawks have targeted the program's swollen size and cost, helping prevent passage of a new Farm Bill. Now Farnham reports, "There are those who say SNAP is making two different constituencies fat -- big corporations and the poor -- the first, figuratively; the second, literally."

In Kentucky -- with its extraordinarily high rate of obesity and, as of June 2012, its 406,689 households on food stamps -- the correlation between those two bears close scrutiny.  Many health advocates who are concerned about Americans' increasing obesity argue that "food stamp purchases should be disallowed for items high in salt or fat or sugar," Farnham notes. Consumer watchdog groups such as Eat Drink Politics similarly argue that food and beverage makers are making a mint from SNAP, and are spending equal portions to oppose legislation antithetical to their interests.

Hard numbers about what the program buys are hard to come by, says the report, in part because the U. S. Department of Agriculture either doesn't have or does not release certain crucial data: "It lacks the legal authority, for example, to require retailers to report what products SNAP participants are purchasing. It knows the dollar value of transactions, but not whether the customer bought Cheesy Puffs or broccoli."

As for the increasing obesity of the poor, data on that problem are readily available, but food stamps' complicity in it is the subject of much debate. Julian Alston, professor of agricultural and resource economics at the University of California, Davis, has studied the question in depth. Alston and his co-authors conclude that food stamp participants are more likely than non-participants to be overweight or obese. Farnham writes that "they don't say food stamps are making them fat. The authors then go on to analyze whether the exclusion of certain food items from program eligibility might make participants healthier." (Read more)

"Who's getting fat off food stamps?" asks ABC News' Alan Farnham, reporting that a record number of Americans -- 46.7 million, or nearly 1 in 7 -- now uses the benefit, known as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. It cost $72 billion last year, up from $30 billion four years earlier. Budget hawks have targeted the program's swollen size and cost, helping prevent passage of a new Farm Bill. Now Farnham reports, "There are those who say SNAP is making two different constituencies fat -- big corporations and the poor -- the first, figuratively; the second, literally."

In Kentucky -- with its extraordinarily high rate of obesity and, as of June 2012, its 406,689 households on food stamps -- the correlation between those two bears close scrutiny.  Many health advocates who are concerned about Americans' increasing obesity argue that "food stamp purchases should be disallowed for items high in salt or fat or sugar," Farnham notes. Consumer watchdog groups such as Eat Drink Politics similarly argue that food and beverage makers are making a mint from SNAP, and are spending equal portions to oppose legislation antithetical to their interests.

Hard numbers about what the program buys are hard to come by, says the report, in part because the U. S. Department of Agriculture either doesn't have or does not release certain crucial data: "It lacks the legal authority, for example, to require retailers to report what products SNAP participants are purchasing. It knows the dollar value of transactions, but not whether the customer bought Cheesy Puffs or broccoli."

As for the increasing obesity of the poor, data on that problem are readily available, but food stamps' complicity in it is the subject of much debate. Julian Alston, professor of agricultural and resource economics at the University of California, Davis, has studied the question in depth. Alston and his co-authors conclude that food stamp participants are more likely than non-participants to be overweight or obese. Farnham writes that "they don't say food stamps are making them fat. The authors then go on to analyze whether the exclusion of certain food items from program eligibility might make participants healthier." (Read more)

Read More

17 percent of Kentuckians lack food security; beef council to help on local level with donations to food banks

More than 750,000 people in Kentucky, 17 percent of those living in the commonwealth, do not always know where they will find their next meal, according to Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap study. Among Kentucky's children, the number of those experiencing food insecurity is an astonishing 23 percent.

Here's a link to the Map the Meal Gap interactive map. To see Kentucky's hunger index by Congressional district, go here.

The Lane Report notes this has prompted state Agriculture Commissioner James Comer to declare September as Farmers and Food Banks Fighting Hunger Month in Kentucky. “Programs such as Farm to Food Banks are ones that aid Kentucky farmers by furnishing them with another outlet to sell their commodities while at the same time providing food for the hungry," said Comer.

The Farms to Food Banks program allows the Kentucky Association of Food Banks to buy surplus and second-grade produce for distribution free of charge through the food banks' network. In honor of Farmers and Food Banks Fighting Hunger Month, the Kentucky Beef Council announced the launch of  Beef Counts KY, a program that will supply nutrient-rich beef for people facing hunger in Kentucky. Farmers will have the option of donating cash or donating proceeds from the sale of beef animals to the program. Fourteen livestock markets across the state are participating and will forward proceeds from donated beef animals to the program. “Each donated animal or the cash equivalent provides roughly 1,600 servings of high-quality nutrient-rich beef protein. This is a local solution to local hunger," said Chuck Crutcher, chairman of the KBC and Hardin County beef farmer. 

More than 750,000 people in Kentucky, 17 percent of those living in the commonwealth, do not always know where they will find their next meal, according to Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap study. Among Kentucky's children, the number of those experiencing food insecurity is an astonishing 23 percent.

Here's a link to the Map the Meal Gap interactive map. To see Kentucky's hunger index by Congressional district, go here.

The Lane Report notes this has prompted state Agriculture Commissioner James Comer to declare September as Farmers and Food Banks Fighting Hunger Month in Kentucky. “Programs such as Farm to Food Banks are ones that aid Kentucky farmers by furnishing them with another outlet to sell their commodities while at the same time providing food for the hungry," said Comer.

The Farms to Food Banks program allows the Kentucky Association of Food Banks to buy surplus and second-grade produce for distribution free of charge through the food banks' network. In honor of Farmers and Food Banks Fighting Hunger Month, the Kentucky Beef Council announced the launch of  Beef Counts KY, a program that will supply nutrient-rich beef for people facing hunger in Kentucky. Farmers will have the option of donating cash or donating proceeds from the sale of beef animals to the program. Fourteen livestock markets across the state are participating and will forward proceeds from donated beef animals to the program. “Each donated animal or the cash equivalent provides roughly 1,600 servings of high-quality nutrient-rich beef protein. This is a local solution to local hunger," said Chuck Crutcher, chairman of the KBC and Hardin County beef farmer. 

Read More

You can do this, too: Lexington church's fresh food program reaches out to lower income neighbors with deep discount

Rick Courtney loads tomatoes into a crate bound
for Fresh Stop (Herald-Leader photo by Charles Bertram)

Fresh produce comes to the church-goers of Fresh Presbyterian Church of Lexington every Sunday through Fresh Stop, a community-supported agriculture program. But it's not your typical CSA program; this one comes with a charitable twist. Sure, members sign up to receive fresh produce weekly during the summer growing season but, writes Mary Meehan of the Lexington Herald-Leader, here 25 percent of the members pay a nominal amount because they live in a "food desert," where fresh food is hard to come by, and have lower incomes. To cover the difference, explains Meehan, the other 75 percent of members pay slightly more than a CSA normally would cost. "That's the key," said Libby Iverson, a church member and Fresh Stop member. "We need to share. That's very important."

The farm-to-table non-profit supplies tomatoes and cabbage, sweet peppers and onions that fill a table last Sunday were literally gleaming with freshness. All were picked from farmer Rick Courtney's Harrison County field just the day before, Meehan notes. It was all the brainchild of student Julia Hofmeister, who, armed with a major in sustainable agriculture at the University of Kentucky and having been part of the local Community Farm Alliance, set out in 2009 to find a farmer. Courtney was a tobacco farmer in Cynthiana, now a section of his farm on the South Fork of the Licking River is filled with vegetables.

Many of the low-income families served by the program are referred by Habitat for Humanity and Kentucky Refugee Ministries. Wheeler said one of the biggest concerns in expanding the program is that families often don't know what to do with all the produce they receive. Hofmeister thinks the program can be made to work elsewhere. "It is so transferrable," she said. (Read more)

Rick Courtney loads tomatoes into a crate bound
for Fresh Stop (Herald-Leader photo by Charles Bertram)

Fresh produce comes to the church-goers of Fresh Presbyterian Church of Lexington every Sunday through Fresh Stop, a community-supported agriculture program. But it's not your typical CSA program; this one comes with a charitable twist. Sure, members sign up to receive fresh produce weekly during the summer growing season but, writes Mary Meehan of the Lexington Herald-Leader, here 25 percent of the members pay a nominal amount because they live in a "food desert," where fresh food is hard to come by, and have lower incomes. To cover the difference, explains Meehan, the other 75 percent of members pay slightly more than a CSA normally would cost. "That's the key," said Libby Iverson, a church member and Fresh Stop member. "We need to share. That's very important."

The farm-to-table non-profit supplies tomatoes and cabbage, sweet peppers and onions that fill a table last Sunday were literally gleaming with freshness. All were picked from farmer Rick Courtney's Harrison County field just the day before, Meehan notes. It was all the brainchild of student Julia Hofmeister, who, armed with a major in sustainable agriculture at the University of Kentucky and having been part of the local Community Farm Alliance, set out in 2009 to find a farmer. Courtney was a tobacco farmer in Cynthiana, now a section of his farm on the South Fork of the Licking River is filled with vegetables.

Many of the low-income families served by the program are referred by Habitat for Humanity and Kentucky Refugee Ministries. Wheeler said one of the biggest concerns in expanding the program is that families often don't know what to do with all the produce they receive. Hofmeister thinks the program can be made to work elsewhere. "It is so transferrable," she said. (Read more)

Read More