title: Self-reported concern about food security--eight states, 1996-1998.
abstract: Food security is defined as having access at all times to enough food for an active, healthy lifestyle (1,2). This definition implies that safe and nutritious foods are available and that household resources are sufficient to meet cost. Recognition that hunger and food security are problems in the United States led to the development and implementation of measures of hunger and food security on national surveys. One of the national health objectives for 2010 is to increase food security and reduce the risk for hunger among all households (objective 19-18) (1). To characterize state-level prevalence of concern about food security, data were analyzed for the eight states that used the Social Context Module of the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) during 1996-1998. This report summarizes the results of this analysis and indicates that approximately 4%-6% of adults reported a concern about having enough food for themselves or their family during the preceding month.
mesh_terms: D005502:Food; D006815:Hunger; D007615:Kansas; D008145:Louisiana; D008396:Maryland; D008923:Missouri; D009009:Montana; D010414:Pennsylvania; D011159:Population Surveillance; D012306:Risk; D013022:South Carolina; D014481:United States; D014768:Virginia