Dietary Intake and Appetite Hormone Patterns among Mothers Participating in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program: A Pilot Study

Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participation has been associated with obesity in women. The objective of this pilot study was to describe the caloric intake and dietary quality at the beginning, middle, and end of a SNAP cycle among food insecure, African-American female head-of-households with overweight/obesity (n = 12). The feasibility of obtaining appetite-regulating hormones to assess the associations between appetite regulation and caloric intake was explored as a secondary aim. Mean caloric intake and dietary quality, as measured by HEI-2010 score, did not differ among study visits. Four patterns of caloric intake among the twelve subjects were reported in which all subjects reported caloric intake less than their daily requirements for weight maintenance. Appetite-stimulating hormone, neuropeptide Y concentrations, was positively associated with percent of Estimated Energy Requirements (%EER) consumed.

Automated summary

Participation in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is associated with obesity in women, but caloric intake and dietary quality did not significantly differ among food insecure, African-American female head-of-households with overweight/obesity in this pilot study. The study also found a positive association between the appetite-stimulating hormone neuropeptide Y concentrations and the percent of Estimated Energy Requirements (%EER) consumed.