The Effects of Food Stamps on Weight Gained by Expectant Mothers

Charles Baum

No 201002, Working Papers from Middle Tennessee State University, Department of Economics and Finance

Abstract: With over 66 % of Americans overweight, expectant mothers are unusual because they are encouraged to gain weight while pregnant. Food stamp receipt (FSR) may facilitate recommended weight gain for pregnant women by providing additional resources for food and nutrition. I examine the effects of FSR on the amount of weight gained by low-income expectant mothers using NLSY79 data. Results indicate FSR decreases the probability gaining an insufficient amount of weight but does not exacerbate the probability of gaining too much weight. Examining the effects of FSR on pregnancy weight gain is important because low birth weight is more likely when expectant mothers gain an insufficient amount of weight.

Keywords: Food stamps; weight; weight gain (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: J1 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2010-02
New Economics Papers: this item is included in nep-agr, nep-hea and nep-reg
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Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:mts:wpaper:201002

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