'I’m going to make sure the kids eat even if I don’t:' Grandparent Food Insecurity 

• In Event: Aging and the Life Course Section Roundtables
  In Refereed Roundtable (90 minute): 7: Intergenerational and Grandparent Roles

Abstract

Whether they co-reside or live in separate households, many low-income grandparents who care for their grandchildren are food insecure. Generally, the more care grandparents provide, the more likely they are to be food insecure. To better understand the link, we conducted in-depth interviews with 63 people age 60 and older with incomes below 130% of the poverty line in 2021. Situating our study within a life course perspective on cumulative advantage and disadvantage, and emphasizing the interdependence of grandparents’ and grandchildren’s lives, we identify several factors contributing to food insecurity among low-income grandparents, including (1) insufficient income, (2) difficulties managing Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, (3) unreliable or unaffordable transportation, (4) limited access to nutritious food, and (5) declining health and mobility. These dynamics show how intergenerational family responsibilities in later life intersect with constrained resources in ways that undermine healthy aging. We note that current US measurement of food insecurity likely undercounts the numbers of nonresidential grandparents who are food insecure because it does not ask nonresidential grandparents about difficulties feeding themselves and their grandchildren. In the discussion we call for a change to this practice.

Authors

• Madonna Harrington Meyer, Syracuse University

• Anna C De La Paz, Syracuse University