CSPC LAUNCHES SNAPtoHealth WEBSITE TO SPUR INNOVATIVE NUTRITION DISCUSSION
Open online platform to identify strategies for putting nutrition at forefront of federal food stamp program
WASHINGTON, DC—Today, the Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress (CSPC), in collaboration with the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH), launched www.SNAPtoHealth.org—an interactive website for public discourse on strategies to promote health and prevent obesity in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), formerly known as the Food Stamps Program. SNAP provides food assistance to over 45 million Americans—a 38% increase since 2008. The site also serves as an online hub for health and nutrition information.
The SNAP to Health website will provide a forum for dialogue and debate among a diverse range of stakeholders, including SNAP participants, academics, state and federal program administrators, advocacy groups, retailers, food industry representatives and the general population. With 1 out of 7 Americans enrolled in SNAP and two-thirds of Americans overweight, it is critical that SNAP benefits be used to purchase healthy foods, rather than products that may contribute to the obesity epidemic in the United States. Furthermore, children have experienced a three-fold increase in obesity since 1980 and they represent 50% of food stamp participants.
“With millions of people experiencing both food insecurity and obesity in America, innovative strategies are needed to promote healthy nutrition for its beneficiaries and reduce overweight in the years ahead,” said project director Susan Blumenthal M.D., Director of CSPC’s Health and Medicine Program and former U.S. Assistant Surgeon General. “Strengthening SNAP is a critical ingredient in meeting 21st-century public health challenges and nutrition needs.”
“SNAP is a vital safety net for millions of families on the edge of hunger, but in its current form fuels the epidemics of obesity and diabetes that are overwhelming America,” said Walter Willett M.D., Dr.P.H., professor of epidemiology and nutrition at HSPH. “Participants, and our country, deserve a program that promotes both food security and health.”
The website is part of an innovative initiative funded by the Aetna Foundation, a national foundation based in Hartford, Connecticut that supports projects to promote wellness, health, and access to high quality care for everyone. The interdisciplinary team for this project includes experts in federal and state health policy, nutritional epidemiology, agricultural economics, and health communications, who are undertaking the following activities: 1) producing a comprehensive scientific literature review on SNAP; 2) conducting the first statistical analysis of NHANES data to determine the current effects of SNAP on the nutrition and obesity rates of its young beneficiaries, ages 4-19 years old; 3) undertaking key informant interviews with experts and stakeholders on SNAP; 4) designing and implementing a survey of 500 stakeholder organizations to identify barriers and opportunities for improving nutrition for SNAP beneficiaries; 5) convening a Capitol Hill Briefing on SNAP; and producing a report of recommendations; and 6) building the SNAPtoHealth.org website.
The Center for the Study of the Presidency and Congress is a non-profit, non-partisan 501(c)3 organization that seeks to further the understanding and functioning of the American Presidency and its related institutions and, thereby, to educate, illuminate, and inspire leaders of tomorrow. More information about the organization can be found at www.thePresidency.org. The views presented on the SNAPtoHealth website are not necessarily those of CSPC, the Aetna Foundation, its directors, officers or staff.