Food insecurity occurs when seniors have limited access to adequate food due to a lack of financial resources and other limitations. This infographic provides an overview of the scope and impact of food insecurity among Arkansas’s seniors age 60 and older.
Key takeaways
- While senior food insecurity rates among Arkansas seniors have declined over the past decade, more than 43,000 seniors remained food insecure in 2020.
- Numerous factors contribute to senior food insecurity, including limited financial resources, reduced mobility, and social isolation.
- Food-insecure seniors are more likely to experience negative health consequences compared to their food-secure peers and other age groups.
- There are initiatives in place to address senior hunger, but more work can still be done to reduce senior hunger, including amplifying efforts to increase enrollment of eligible seniors in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
References
- United States Department of Agriculture. (2015 September). Household food security in the United States in 2021. ers.usda.gov/webdocs/publications/104656/err-309.pdf?v=3653.3
- Feeding America and the National Foundation to End Senior Hunger. The state of senior hunger in America (2010 to 2020 reports). feedingamerica.org/research/senior-hunger-research/senior
- Based on the percentages of food insecurity categories from Feeding America’s State of senior hunger in America 2020 report, retrieved from feedingamerica.org/sites/default/files/2022-05/The%20State%20of%20Senior%20Hunger%20in%202020_Full%20Report%20w%20Cover.pdf, and the U.S. Census Bureau’s 2016-2020 American Community Survey 5-year data, retrieved from data.census.gov
- Arkansas Department of Human Services. (2014). Senior hunger in Arkansas 2014. lonokecountyseniors.com/assets/files/pdf/Senior-Hunger-in-Arkansas-2014-FINAL.pdf
- National Council on Aging. (2022, April 15). Get the facts on food insecurity and older adults. ncoa.org/article/what-is-food-insecurity-get-the-facts
- United Health Foundation. (2022) SNAP reach – ages 60+ americashealthrankings.org/explore/senior/measure/SNAP_Reach/state/AR
- Feeding America. (2022). The state of senior hunger in 2020: Executive summary. feedingamerica.org/sites/default/files/2022-05/The%20State%20of%20Senior%20Hunger%20in%202020_Executive%20Summary.pdf
- Feeding America. (2021). The health consequences of senior hunger in the United States: Evidence from the 1999-2016 NHANES. feedingamerica.org/sites/default/files/2021-08/2021%20-%20Health%20Consequences%20of%20Senior%20Hunger%201999-2016.pdf
