Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 16, 2026

Iterative Development of an Innovative Smartphone-Based Dietary Assessment Tool: Traqq
Published on: March 19, 2021
Public support for policies to improve the nutritional impact of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)
Michael W Long1, Cindy W Leung1, Lilian W Y Cheung1
11 Harvard School of Public Health, 651 Huntington Avenue, Building II Room 311, Boston, MA 02115, USA.
Objective:
To determine public attitudes towards federal spending on nutrition assistance programmes and support for policies to improve the nutritional impact of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP).
Design:
Participants answered survey questions by telephone assessing support for SNAP spending and proposed programme policy changes.
Setting Usa Subjects:
Survey of 3024 adults selected by random digit dialling conducted in April 2012, including 418 SNAP participants.
Results:
A majority (77%; 95% CI 75, 79%) of all respondents supported maintaining or increasing SNAP benefits, with higher support among Democrats (88%; 95% CI 86, 90%) than Republicans (61%; 95% CI 58, 65%). The public supported policies to improve the nutritional impact of SNAP. Eighty-two per cent (95% CI 80, 84%) of respondents supported providing additional benefits to programme participants that can only be used on healthful foods. Sixty-nine per cent (95% CI 67, 71%) of respondents supported removing SNAP benefits for sugary drinks. A majority of SNAP participants (54%; 95% CI 48, 60%) supported removing SNAP benefits for sugary drinks. Of the 46% (95% CI 40, 52%) of SNAP participants who initially opposed removing sugary drinks, 45 % (95% CI 36, 54%) supported removing SNAP benefits for sugary drinks if the policy also included additional benefits to purchase healthful foods.
Conclusions:
The US public broadly supports increasing or maintaining spending on SNAP. The majority of respondents, including SNAP participants, supported policies to improve the nutritional impact of SNAP by restricting the purchase of sugary drinks and incentivizing purchase of healthful foods with SNAP benefits.
Related Concept Videos
Parentral Nutrition: Centeral and Peripheral Parental Nutrition
PN can be administered through two primary routes:
1. Central Parenteral Nutrition (CPN):
CPN involves delivering a high concentration of nutrients through a large vein. This is typically achieved using a Peripherally Inserted Central Catheter (PICC) or,...
Key Elements for Plant Nutrition
Absorption of Nutrients
Enterocytes, which are specialized polar epithelial cells, line the mucosa of the small intestinal walls. These cells...
Dietary Connections
Self-Help Support Groups
Accessibility and Cost-Effectiveness
One of the primary strengths of self-help...
Regulation of Food Intake