Relationship of Food Label Use and Household Availability of Beverages in a Sample of Mothers of Preschool Children Participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to assess the association between maternal participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) and the use of food labels to purchase various types of beverages, and whether home availability of beverages differed by SNAP participation. Low-income mothers (n=250) of preschool children were surveyed. Food label use to purchase beverages and home availability of beverages were analyzed using adjusted multivariate logistic regression and iteratively reweighted with least squares regression.  SNAP participants were approximately 50% less likely to use the food label to purchase beverages for the home than non-participants. SNAP homes also had significantly higher availability of fruit juice (192 oz vs. 128 oz), juice drinks (192 oz vs. 128 oz), regular soda (156 oz vs. 135 oz), and low-calorie beverages (469 oz vs. 243 oz) than non-SNAP homes (p < 0.05). Further research is needed to understand the attitudes and group-specific characteristics associated with food label use and beverage availability among low-income families.