Palm Beach County, Florida, is the home of the rich and famous, with over 15 billionaires calling it home, according to BizJournal. The median household income is over $53,000, about $10,000 more than in sunny Tampa to the north.
So the question is: Why has there been a 27 percent increase in the number of Palm Beach seniors using benefits from SNAP – which stands for “Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program” and was formerly known as “food stamps” – to get food on the dinner table? Even more astonishing, almost 50 percent of seniors living in Palm Beach County chronically don’t have enough food to eat and qualify for SNAP, but don’t use the benefit.
I was speechless when I read these shocking statistics in a recent report called “Hunger in Older Adults,” which was spearheaded by Meals on Wheels America. The report estimated that more than 10 million older Americans (16 percent of older adults) experience hunger annually. Here’s the real shock: Some of these folks have incomes above the poverty level. Some older adults may not be “poor” as defined by the poverty line, but they still may not have enough money to purchase – or lack the ability to shop or prepare – healthy foods on a regular basis.
“Financial limitations are the key cause of food insecurity among older adults,” Angel Planells, a registered dietitian nutritionist and spokesman for the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics, told me. “These folks are trying to stretch their food budget to get the most bang for their buck.” Unfortunately, they may be purchasing cheaper, less nutritious foods down the snack food aisle to feed their hunger rather than selecting healthier items in the produce aisle. Skipping meals, which can also negatively affect the quality of seniors’ diets, is another strategy that older adults may use to stretch their fixed incomes.
Click here to read more about the starling number of seniors from all income levels that suffer from malnutrition and programs available to help.
