Food stamps and the energy status of the U.S. elderly poor

The energy status of poor elderly individuals in relation to the nonpoor elderly was examined using data from NHANES I and II. Within the poor population, the status of Food Stamp Program participants was compared with that of nonparticipants. The indicators of energy status used were weight (adjusted for height), triceps skinfold, subscapular skinfold, and energy intake. Energy status was examined by analyses of variance; the effects associated with sex, race, age, geographic region, and other potentially confounding variables were included in the model. In both surveys, there were interactions of income and food stamp use with sex. That is, poor women had greater means for weight and triceps skinfold than the nonpoor. Among the poor women, the Food Stamp Program participants weighed more than the nonparticipants, and their triceps skinfold mean was greater in NHANES II than in NHANES I. The poor men had a lower mean for triceps skinfold than the nonpoor, but there was no difference between the program participants and nonparticipants. Hence, for the poor elderly in NHANES I and II, food stamp use was not consistently associated with differences in energy status, as indicated by weight, skinfold, and energy intake.