The study, which focused on examining the ability of SNAP participants to follow a healthy diet based on the nutritional values suggested by the DGA, yielded troubling results. Despite SNAP's noble intent to provide nutritious foods essential for health and well-being, the study suggests that low-income households may face significant challenges in meeting the established nutritional standards.
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), developed by the U.S. Departments of Agriculture and Health and Human Services, are intended to advise the population on dietary and fluid choices that meet nutrient needs, promote health, and prevent disease. However, the study notes that for SNAP participants in low-income households, achieving these nutritional goals can be challenging.
This analysis highlights the importance of assessing and addressing barriers that SNAP participants may face in attempting to follow a diet that meets nutritional standards. As the program continues to be a key piece of the nation's food safety net, understanding and addressing these challenges becomes essential to improving the effectiveness and positive impact of SNAP on the health and well-being of its participants.
"Healthy eating is a critical issue, especially in low-income communities where there is a combination of economic and geographic constraints that make healthy, affordable food less accessible. People working within these constraints live in food deserts and have to consider multiple factors when making decisions about their family's diet," explains Lucy Family Institute for Data and Society Director and Frank M. Freimann Professor of Computer Science and Engineering at Notre Dame, Nitesh Chawla.
In a recent study conducted by the University of Notre Dame research team, the complexities of SNAP participants' food choices in low-income households were explored. Using the maximum SNAP allotment for a single person in Indiana in October 2021, which amounted to $250 per month, the team broke this amount down to determine a person's daily budget.
The team employed an innovative approach by creating a linear programming model that considers both product nutrition and prices of available items. According to computer science and engineering professor and vice president and associate provost for teaching and learning Ronald Metoye, the goal of the study was to use computation to integrate all relevant information, such as inventory, prices and nutritional content, and apply optimization to make informed decisions.
The results revealed that people make trade-offs based on available information to make use of their funds and maximize nutrition. However significant challenges arise when trying to create a realistic diet that meets the SNAP monetary allowance and the nutritional needs of the Dietary Guidelines for Americans (DGA), especially for men.
The team also explored the trade-off between cost and nutritional value, focusing on nutrients that Americans tend to over-consume, such as sodium, saturated fats, and added sugars. The results revealed a direct correlation between sodium and cost: as the cost of food decreases, the amount of sodium consumed increases. In addition, DGA parameters related to daily vitamin and mineral intake requirements proved to be particularly challenging to meet within a SNAP budget.
This study highlights the complexity of balancing economic constraints with nutritional needs, underscoring the importance of addressing these issues to improve the effectiveness of the SNAP program and promote healthier dietary choices in vulnerable communities.
"What we found was that it's very difficult to meet the dietary guidelines on vitamins and minerals," said a doctoral student in the Lucy Institute's Chawla-advised DIAL Lab at the Lucy Institute, Joe Germino. "You have to make a conscious decision to look for foods that are cheap enough and actually fit your budget. It just adds another layer of complexity to an already difficult problem when you live in a food desert," he adds.
Recent census data has highlighted the existence of 11 areas in St. Joseph County that meet the criteria for food deserts, where a significant number of residents are more than a mile from the nearest supermarket. This finding raises concerns about access to healthy food and highlights the need to assess the implications for the local population, especially those in low-income households.
"The reason we chose South Bend is because we have areas that are considered food deserts and we're seeing this lack of food access within our own community," said Lucy graduate fellow, Metoyer advisor and study co-author Annalisa Szymanski.
For residents living in and around these areas, distance to full-service grocery stores becomes a critical factor. In addition, access to transportation to purchase healthy foods presents itself as an additional challenge. These barriers are particularly difficult for low-income households to overcome, which could result in increased reliance on alternative food sources, such as food pantries.
The recent study published in Frontiers in Big Data is just one part of the efforts that researchers at the University of Notre Dame are undertaking to address the national challenge of food access and food insecurity. These efforts are centered on the Food Information Networks (FINS) project, led by Ronald Metoyer and funded by the National Institute of Food and Agriculture.
The project will culminate in the launch of an app that employs optimization methods to recommend healthier foods to individuals, taking into account their dietary goals and budgets. Next spring, the researchers will pilot test the app in Rum Village, a South Bend neighborhood, in collaboration with local Walmart grocery stores. The goal is to evaluate how the app can overcome transportation constraints and how the recommendations impact people's eating habits.
The FINS project represents a comprehensive approach to addressing food challenges, combining academic research, advanced technology and community collaboration. The pilot study in Rum Village will serve as an opportunity to practically evaluate the impact of these technological solutions on people's daily lives and potentially positively transform eating habits in communities with significant barriers to healthy food access.