Book Description

Food insecurity is related to numerous poor health and development outcomes, particularly in children. A greater proportion of Hispanic households in the U.S. experience food insecurity compared to non-Hispanic white households, but there is little evidence about distinctions between Hispanic ethnic subgroups in regards to food insecurity prevalence and coping strategies. Considering that Mexicanorigin and Mexican American Hispanics are the largest Hispanic subgroup in the U.S. and that the majority of children living in poverty are Hispanic with at least one Mexican-origin parent, more research is needed to understand their distinct risk factors, as well as their immigrant experience and coping strategies, and how these relate to food security status. To date, there are no published data on food provisioning related to food security among Mexican-origin households in the northeast U.S. nor are there data that account for both the immigrant's life course and current ecological system in the U.S. The purpose of this research was to capture multiple levels of influence on household and child food security status and related coping strategies among Mexican-origin households with children, using a mixed-methods approach guided by two theoretical constructs: life course perspective and ecological systems theory. Analyses of national survey data revealed that among all Hispanic households in the U.S., Mexican- and Salvadoran-origin households are most at risk and Cuban-origin are least at risk, compared to U.S.origin Hispanic households. In addition, among U.S.-origin Hispanic households, those with Mexican and Puerto Rican nativity (maternal origin) are most at risk and those with Cuban nativity are least at risk, compared to Hispanics with U.S.origin maternal nativity. In addition, our qualitative findings suggest that recent, low-income Mexican-origin mothers rely on culture and life course experiences, particularly those in Mexico, to shape how they feed their families and children in the U.S. These food-provisioning strategies exhibit important attributes of mothers towards maintaining a food secure household, particularly behaviors related to food resource management and planning. Understanding these multi-level contextual influences on Mexican-origin households provides valuable insight into ways to facilitate protective coping strategies through culturally-tailored programming at both federal and local levels.