Improving Data to Analyze Food and Nutrition Policies (2005) / Chapter Skim
Currently Skimming:
4 Other Federal Data Sources
4 Other Federal Data Sources
Pages 63-75
The Chapter Skim interface presents what we've algorithmically identified as the most significant single chunk of text within every page in the chapter.
Select key terms on the right to highlight them within pages of the chapter.
From page 63... ...
In this chapter, we briefly review several of these data sources and discuss possible ways they could be used to address food policy questions. To add value for this purpose, consideration could be given to enhancing one or more of these datasets in ways similar to those suggested in Chapter 2 for the NHANES and CE surveys -- for example, by matching survey records with administrative records for food assistance programs to add to or improve the quality of program participation data, by appending neighborhood characteristics of various kinds from the 2000 census, the American Community Survey (when small-area data become available)
|
From page 64... ...
on food expenditures, food assistance program participation, food insecurity, and ways of coping with not having enough food -- see Box 4-1. The CPS sample design is state representative, and its large size will support state-level estimates when the data are averaged over 3 years.
|
From page 65... ...
· Restaurants, fast-food places, cafeterias, vending machines · Other places Whether Would Need to Spend More or Less for Just Enough Food and How Much More or Less Food Assistance Program Participation · Receive food stamps in last 12 months and which months · Amount of most recent food stamp benefit · Children aged 5-18 receive free or reduced-price lunches at school in last month · Children receive free or reduced-price breakfasts at school in last month · Children receive free or reduced-price food at day care or Head Start center in last month · How many women and children receive WIC foods in last month Food Insecurity Scale Questions for Households with and without Children Ways of Coping with Not Having Enough Food · Receive meals from "Meals on Wheels" or other community programs in last month · Eat prepared meals at a community program or senior center in last month · Get emergency food from a food pantry, church, or food bank in last 12 months and how often · Have a source of emergency food nearby · Eat meals at a soup kitchen in last 12 months and how often SOURCE: National Research Council (2005b: Appendix A)
|
From page 66... ...
66 IMPROVING DATA TO ANALYZE FOOD AND NUTRITION POLICIES nation of detailed income and program participation information and the food expenditure and insecurity data for matched households could support in-depth analysis of the effects of income constraints on food purchasing, the role of food assistance programs in alleviating food insecurity, whether people who lack health insurance coverage are more or less food insecure than households with public or private coverage, and similar topics. AMERICAN TIME USE SURVEY The American Time Use Survey (ATUS)
|
From page 67... ...
, data from the ATUS could be used to give a more robust estimate of the costs of meal preparation at various expenditure levels, including time costs. Another potential use of ATUS is to understand and improve access to food assistance programs by indicating how much time it takes to acquire, use, and retain program benefits, such as food stamps and WIC (Frost, 2004)
|
From page 68... ...
Longitudinal information from a panel survey that repeatedly interviews the same respondents would facilitate research on changes in food consumption behavior, diet, and health at the household or individual level and how they might relate to such factors as changes in income and program participation, initiatives for food education and safety, or changes in other contextual factors. Longitudinal data are usually expensive to collect, so that fielding a comprehensive new panel survey specifically for food and nutrition-related behavioral analysis does not seem feasible with the resources currently available to the Economic Research Service.
|
From page 69... ...
Both cohort questionnaire sets include questions on the height, weight, and physical activity of the children and about participation in WIC and the Food Stamp Program. The parent questionnaire for the birth cohort at 2 years old asked about breastfeeding, formula use, and other beverage consumption by the child of interest.
|
From page 70... ...
The HRS also collects information on housing costs, out-of-pocket medical care expenditures, food expenditures per week or month, in stores and delivered, and expenditures for meals eaten out. Versions of the HRS are available under special access arrangements with links to Medicare and Social Security earnings and benefits.
|
From page 71... ...
. The core content of the PSID includes many elements: family members' demographic characteristics; detailed employment histories and income by source for the household head and spouse; less detailed income information for other family members; program participation, including amounts and months received for food stamps; estimates of federal taxes paid; housing costs; average weekly food expenditures for home consump
|
From page 72... ...
QUICK-TURNAROUND SURVEYS There may be some cases for which a few questions about dieting practices and attitudes or concerns about food safety will provide useful information for monitoring food market trends or food consumption behavior. For example, USDA may want to know how many Americans are practicing the Atkins diet or how people are reacting to stories about mad cow disease.
|
From page 73... ...
Other modules could be developed to address specific food and nutrition behaviors. Such modules could include a food frequency questionnaire designed to track food consumption behaviors with confirmed or suspected health risks or benefits, such as excessive consumption of seafood with high levels of mercury.
|
From page 74... ...
. EXPANDED FOOD AND NUTRITION EDUCATION PROGRAM A dataset that could be used to understand food consumption in populations served by food assistance programs comes from the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP)
|
From page 75... ...
Also administered with the food recall is a 10-item food practice checklist covering other behaviors of interest to EFNEP, including food safety, meal planning, use of nutrition labeling, comparing prices, and having children eat breakfast. Aggregate data are available as national summaries, as well as by state and by race -- white, black, Hispanic, Native American, and Asian/Pacific Islander.
|
Key Terms
This material may be derived from roughly machine-read images, and so is provided only to facilitate research.
More
information on Chapter Skim is available.