Access to SNAP-Authorized Retailers and Diet Quality Among SNAP Recipients

Area of Science:

• Public Health Nutrition
• Food Access and Health Disparities
• Nutritional Epidemiology

Background:

• Poor food environments negatively impact diet quality and health outcomes.
• The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a key nutrition safety net in the US.
• The relationship between SNAP-authorized retailer access and recipient diet quality is not well understood.

Purpose of the Study:

• To assess the association between access to SNAP-authorized retailers and diet quality among SNAP recipients.
• To investigate how proximity and availability of different types of SNAP retailers influence dietary intake.

Main Methods:

• Serial cross-sectional study using 24-hour dietary recall data from the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (2007-2018).
• Linked participant residences to SNAP-authorized retailers using the Historical SNAP Retailer Locator dataset.
• Generalized linear models adjusted for demographic factors and survey design.

Main Results:

• Living closer to SNAP-authorized retailers was associated with higher Healthy Eating Index-2015 (HEI-2015) scores.
• Proximity to superstores and grocery stores showed the strongest positive association with HEI-2015 scores.
• Each additional mile from a SNAP retailer was linked to a decrease in HEI-2015 scores.

Conclusions:

• Access to SNAP-authorized retailers is associated with improved diet quality among SNAP recipients.
• Enhancing retailer availability in underserved areas could be a strategy to improve public health and reduce diet-related diseases.
• Findings underscore the importance of food environment accessibility for nutritional well-being.