This Halloween, it was all trick and no treat for this federal administration. While destroying the East Wing of the White House to build a $300 million dollar ballroom, Donald Trump and his Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins failed to fund the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Programs (SNAP). On Nov. 1 — for the first time since the Food Stamp Act of 1964 was passed, the 42 million Americans who depend on SNAP to put food on the table received nothing and 191,000 of them live in western Massachusetts.
SNAP benefits are one of the many federal programs affected by the government shutdown, but there is a $5 billion contingency fund, used in past shutdowns that Rollins and Trump could have tapped into. But instead they decided to blame the Democrats, saying the Dems were holding out to pay for health care for “illegal aliens” and “gender mutilation
procedures.” In fact, Medicaid funds, which Democrats are trying to protect, can’t be used for undocumented immigrants, and states determine whether Medicaid funds are used for gender affirming care. (Half do, half don’t.)
In the meantime, the prices for groceries are still rising.
Two federal judges have ruled that the federal government must fund SNAP, and some states like Massachusetts, New York, and Colorado are trying to fill the gap, but at the time of the writing of this column, the fate of food stamps is still in limbo.
SNAP benefits, like Medicaid go disproportionately to children, the elderly, and the disabled. Ironically, the 10 states with the most food insecurity are southern red states, while comparatively wealthy blue states like Massachusetts pay a disproportionate share of taxes that pay for these benefits.
One out of four Americans suffer from food insecurity. This term may be difficult to conceptualize since folks with this level of hunger may not be thin; in fact they may be obese. These Americans do not have the money to pay for nutritious foods and so fill up on fattening cheap junk foods.
Obesity is one of the leading health effects of the unavailability of affordable healthy food. Since obesity is now the leading cause of fatty liver disease, it is not surprising that food insecurity is correlated with fatty liver, in adults and children. A 2024 study concluded that food insecurity at age 4 increased the risk of fatty liver by 3.5 times.
The effects of this kind of malnutrition begin before birth. Pregnant woman who face food scarcity are more likely to suffer from anemia, and hypertension. They are more likely to suffer postpartum depression. And their infants are more likely to have lower birthweight. Women of color are disproportionately affected.
Children growing up in the United States without nutritious food are more likely to have cavities. They are at greater risk for anemia, asthma, hypertension, poorly controlled celiac
disease, and other chronic illness. These kids are more likely to suffer from depression, anxiety, sleep problems, and generally higher levels of stress — as measured by cortisol levels in their hair follicles. Children with intellectual disabilities and/or developmental disabilities are both more likely to go hungry and to suffer more from the effects of food shortages.
Adolescents are another group disproportionately affected by food insecurity. At their developmental stage, they are less likely to think of the consequences of their actions, and more likely to be ashamed of using utilizing free food programs. In a large study done by Ohio State and the CDC, teens who reported “going hungry” in the previous month due to lack of food had a significant increase in the number of fights, school suspensions, sexually transmitted diseases, and psychological distress. In boys there was an increase in drug use and dealing; in girls there was an increase in sex for money to enable them to buy food.
Many college students, living on their own for the first time on a limited budget — often balancing jobs and college expenses — also go hungry. Researchers from Johns Hopkins and the University of Michigan, looking at one large Midwestern university, found that students with food insecurity ate fewer fruits and vegetables, less fiber, and more sugar, and had an increased frequency of eating disorders, anxiety, depression, and sleep problems.
Adults suffering from food insecurity are more likely to experience metabolic syndrome
(a combination of high blood pressure, oversized waist lines, increased cholesterol, and
decreased HDL or “good cholesterol”) which can leads to diabetes, heart disease, or stroke. Like children, adults facing food scarcity have increased levels of mental illness.
Older adults lacking nutritious food have an increased risk of Alzheimer’s disease. A study of people over the age of 65 has shown a greater risk of falls (a common source of morbidity and mortality) for those with both visual impairment and food insecurity; the combination of both is especially deadly. In another study, food scarcity shortened seniors’ telomeres (the protective shields at the end of chromosomes) which is associated with more rapid aging.
In recent years nutritionists, public health experts, and physicians have championed programs using food as medicine. In fact, that’s the name of the protocol. The treatment is simply this: boxes of nutritious food are sent to a family on a regular basis, with personalized nutritional counseling. Studies have shown that Food as Medicine can decrease hemoglobin A1C and the risk of diabetes, ameliorate obesity, improve birthweight of infants, and decrease risk of prematurity, and not surprisingly — increase consumption of fruits and vegetables and decrease food insecurity.
Representative Jim McGovern is co-sponsoring bipartisan bills to improve school lunch programs, and for seniors, the “Medically Tailored Home Delivered Meals Demonstration Pilot Act,” which will deliver meals to elderly people, focused on their specific needs. As McGovern said in a press release, “Democrats and Republicans can agree on this simple truth: food is medicine … By connecting healthcare and nutrition, we can improve lives,
strengthen communities and build a fairer healthier future for all.”
On the Monday and Tuesday before Thanksgiving, he will be helping to lead Monte’s
March — begun by NPR radio co-host Monte Belmonte — that goes 43 miles over two days to support the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts. The Food Bank provides 14 million meals a year to the residents of western Massachusetts — much of it from local farms. Though it cannot take the place of the loss SNAP benefits, it is a vital local organization — one well worth supporting by marching, donating to a team, or both.
Dr. David Gottsegen of Belchertown is a pediatrician who focuses on the interrelationship between mind body and spirit. He will be marching for the Food Bank, for the tenth year, all 43 miles.