Food procurement and the nutritional adequacy of diets in low-income families.

Seventy-six white and black low-income families were interviewed weekly during 1 month to determine how much they spent on food using Food Stamps, WIC coupons, and cash and how much additional food they obtained from different food and meals programs. After families had received their public assistance and Food Stamp allotments for the month, a 24-hour recall was obtained each week from each family member so that food intake could be monitored from the recalls as food-buying resources were depleted. Although families bought most of their food the first 2 weeks, they maintained a relatively constant food intake through the last week of the month. However, when nutrient intakes were compared with Recommended Dietary Allowances, the diets were found to be well supplied in protein, ascorbic acid, thiamin, niacin, riboflavin, vitamin B-12, vitamin A, and phosphorus, and inadequately supplied in vitamin B-6, vitamin D, vitamin E, iron, calcium, magnesium, zinc, and pantothenic acid. Since that finding was true not just at the end of the month but from the beginning, it indicated that the nutrition problems of low-income families are not intermittent, but continuous.