About one in five households with children in the United States face food insecurity at some point during the year. Healthy food is important for children's growth and well-being as it supports their physical, social, mental, and emotional health. Find resources in this section on food, nutrition, and food security, including State and local examples.
Childhood Food Insecurity in the U.S.: Trends, Causes, and Policy Options (PDF - 3,203 KB)
Gunderson & Ziliak (2014)
The Future of Children
Highlights new research from the Research Program on Childhood Hunger at the University of Kentucky Center for Poverty Research on the causes of food insecurity among children and the effectiveness of public policies, especially on severe forms of food hardship.
Food Insecurity
Child Trends (2018)
Reviews key facts about food insecurity in the United States, trends in food insecurity, and differences by race, family structure, household income, and more.
Healthy Eating
KidsHealth.org
Reviews healthy eating for children and how to help kids improve their nutrition and start healthy eating habits.
MyHealthfinder
U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Disease and Health Promotion, National Health Information Center (2015)
Provides information and tools to help parents and families stay healthy. Includes nutrition and physical activity, doctor visits, pregnancy and safety.
MyPlate Tip Sheets
ChooseMyPlate.gov
Presents tip sheets that focus on healthy eating topics such as making family meals, meal planning, healthy snacks, party preparation, navigating buffets, and more.
Nutrition.gov
Offers credible information to help families make healthful eating choices. The website provides information on healthy eating, physical activity, nutrition, and food safety among other topics.
Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
U.S. Department of Agriculture, Food & Nutrition Service
Explores SNAP, which offers nutrition assistance to low-income individuals and families and provides economic benefits to communities. The website provides information on eligibility, how to apply, where SNAP can be used, and more.
What is Food Insecurity?
Hunger and Health by Feeding America
Discusses food insecurity and how low-income families can be affected by it and overlapping issues that increase a family's risk for food insecurity. The resource reviews the kinds of families affected by food insecurity and describes ranges of food insecurity.
State and Local Examples
Family Nutrition
New Mexico Department of Children, Youth & Families
Explains New Mexico's USDA Child Nutrition Programs, which provide Federal funds to institutions to initiate and maintain nonprofit food service programs for eligible families.
Feeding Texas
Presents an organization that works to move Texans toward food security, strengthen the response to hunger through collaboration and scaling success, and help to solve hunger in Texas.
Virginia Family Nutrition Program
Virginia Cooperative Extension
Describes the Family Nutrition Program in Virginia, which aims to teach limited-resource families and youth how to make healthier food choices and become better managers of available food resources for better health.