In November, Maine lost $26 million in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits, formerly known as food stamps. The cut, which comes because of the end of the stimulus’s temporary financial boost, affects 251,000 individuals — about 19 percent of the state’s population. That’s about one in five of our neighbors.
As a society we are learning more about what a lack of food does to children’s development. The SNAP Vaccine, published by Children’s Health Watch in 2012, reports that without enough food, children risk delays in motor skills, and many experience cognitive deficits. Moreover, children in homes without enough food are more likely to have lower test scores, repeat grades, be suspended and have trouble making friends. Researchers from Cornell and the National Center on Health Statistics have found that children from these homes are likely to have stomachaches, headaches and colds more often than those who have enough food.