The AAP and the Food Research & Action Center (FRAC) jointly released a new toolkit, “Addressing Food Insecurity: A Toolkit for Pediatricians,” a comprehensive resource on how to identify and address childhood food insecurity. This kit provides specific information on how to:

• screen patients for food insecurity,
• address the topic in a sensitive manner,
• make the appropriate interventions, most commonly by referring patients and their families to the federal nutrition programs, and
• advocate for greater food security and improved overall health of children and their families.

One in six children lives in a food-insecure household. Studies have shown that children in food-insecure households – those with limited or uncertain access to enough food – are more likely to become sick and be hospitalized more often than their peers. Developmental delays and behavioral problems also can result, as can obesity.

Click here to read the Toolkit.