SNAP benefits have been cut and disrupted – causing more kids to go without enough healthy food and harming child development
In the United States, nearly 42 million individuals rely on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) for food assistance, with approximately 40% being children under 18. This critical support not only helps families purchase nutritious groceries but also plays a significant role in promoting their health and well-being. Research indicates that disruptions to SNAP benefits, such as those anticipated from the potential government shutdown in 2025 and recent cuts introduced in a tax-and-spending package, could lead to heightened stress levels and increased food insecurity among children. As a developmental psychologist studying the impacts of nutrition and stress on children, I am particularly concerned about the long-term consequences of these disruptions on the physical and mental health of the next generation.
Food insecurity, defined as the lack of consistent access to enough nutritious food, has been linked to various adverse health outcomes in children, including increased risks of chronic illnesses like asthma and obesity. Surprisingly, limited access to nutritious food often leads families to rely on cheaper, unhealthy options high in fats and sugars, exacerbating the obesity epidemic among food-insecure children. Studies have shown that even temporary interruptions in food assistance can have lasting effects, suggesting that children who experience food insecurity are at greater risk for cardiovascular issues in adulthood. Furthermore, food insecurity during pregnancy poses significant risks, including complications such as premature births and gestational diabetes, which can adversely affect both mothers and their babies. Research indicates that when pregnant women have access to SNAP benefits, their risks for these complications significantly decrease, highlighting the program’s importance in safeguarding maternal and child health.
The mental health implications of food insecurity are equally alarming. A study involving over 100,000 U.S. children found that those facing food insecurity were 50% more likely to experience anxiety or depression compared to their food-secure peers. This distress often correlates with behavioral problems and poor academic performance, creating a cycle that can lead to long-term health issues and diminished opportunities in adulthood. The stress of food insecurity is compounded by other stressors that many families face, such as poverty and lack of access to healthcare. As parents struggle to provide for their children, their own mental health may suffer, leading to harsher parenting styles that can further impact children’s well-being. Unfortunately, SNAP benefits often fall short of covering the true cost of nutritious food, forcing families to rely on food banks and pantries, particularly as the month progresses. The need for comprehensive solutions to address food insecurity and its far-reaching effects on children’s health and development is more urgent than ever.
Being able to buy nutritious groceries is essential for your family’s health.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images
About
4 in 10 of the more than 42 million Americans
who get Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits are children under 18. This food aid helps their families buy groceries and boosts their health in many ways – both during childhood and once they’re adults.
I am a
developmental psychologist
who studies how stress and nutrition affect kids’ mental and physical health during childhood, and how those effects continue once they become adults.
Researchers like me are worried that the
SNAP benefits disruption caused by the 2025 government shutdown
and the
SNAP cuts included in the big tax-and-spending package
President Donald Trump signed into law on July 4 will make even more children experience high levels of stress and will prevent millions of kids from accessing a steady diet of nutritious food.
Food insecurity can harm kids – even before they’re born
Food insecurity
is the technical term for when people lack consistent access to enough nutritious food.
In childhood, it’s associated with
having worse physical health
than most people, including an elevated risk of getting
asthma and other chronic illnesses
.
It is also tied to a
higher risk of child obesity
. It seems counterintuitive that lower food access is associated with greater obesity risk. One explanation is that not having
access to enough nutritious food
may lead people to eat a higher-fat, higher-sugar diet that includes food that’s cheap and filling but may cause them to gain weight.
Even
temporary disruptions to the disbursement of SNAP benefits
can harm American kids. While the effects of brief food shortages can be hard to measure, a study on a
temporary food shortage in Kenya
suggests that even short-term food shortages can influence both parents and their kids for a long time.
And SNAP spending cuts, including those in what Trump called his “big beautiful bill,” are
bound to hurt many children
whose families were relying on SNAP to get enough to eat and are now losing their benefits.
A study by researchers from Northwestern and Princeton universities, published in 2025, followed more than 1,000 U.S. children into adulthood. It showed that food insecurity in early childhood predicted
higher cardiovascular risks in adulthood
. But those researchers also found that SNAP benefits could reduce cardiovascular risks later in life for kids facing food insecurity.
Food insecurity in pregnancy is dangerous too, and
not just for mothers
. It also
poses risks to their babies
.
Another study published in 2025 reviewed the medical records of over 19,000 pregnant U.S. women. It found that pregnant women who experience food insecurity are more likely to
have pregnancy-related complications
, such as giving birth weeks or months before their due date, developing gestational diabetes or spending extra time in the hospital, with their baby requiring a stay in a neonatal intensive care unit.
This same study found that when pregnant women received SNAP benefits and other forms of government food assistance, they were
largely protected from these
risks tied to food insecurity.
Food insecurity harms children’s mental health
A 2021 analysis of more than 100,000 U.S. children led by researchers at the University of California, Berkeley, and Kaiser Permanente showed that when kids experienced food insecurity sometimes or often in a 12-month period, they ran a
50% greater risk
of anxiety or depression compared to kids who didn’t.
Food insecurity in childhood is also associated with more
behavior problems
and worse
academic performance
. These mental health, academic and behavioral problems in childhood can put people on a path toward poorer health and fewer job opportunities later on.
Children and babies experiencing food insecurity are more likely to
have nutrient deficiencies
, including insufficient iron. A review of decades of research that I participated in found that iron deficiency during infancy and early childhood, when the brain is developing quickly,
can cause lasting harm
.
Other research projects I’ve taken part in have found that iron deficiency in infancy is associated with
cognitive deficits, not getting a high school diploma or going to college
, and
mental health problems
later on.
Food insecurity is often one of many sources of stress kids face
If a child is experiencing food insecurity, they are often dealing with other types of stress at the same time. Food insecurity is more common for children
experiencing poverty
and
homelessness
. It’s also common for kids with
little access to health care
.
Research from the research group I lead as well as other researchers have found that experiencing multiple sources of stress in childhood can harm
mental and physical health
, including how
bodies manage stress
. These different sources of
stress often pile up
, contributing to health problems.
Parents experiencing food insecurity often get stressed out because they’re scrambling to get enough food for their children. And when
parents are stressed
they become more
susceptible to mental health problems
, and may become more likely to lose their tempers or
be physically aggressive
with their kids.
In turn, when parents are stressed out, have mental health problems or develop harsh parenting styles, it’s bad for their kids.
SNAP falls short, even in normal times
To be sure, even before the
2025 government shutdown disrupted SNAP funding
, its benefits
didn’t cover the full cost
of feeding most families.
Because they
fell short of what was necessary to prevent
food insecurity, many families with SNAP benefits needed to regularly visit food pantries and food banks – especially toward the end of the month once their benefits had been spent.
A grocer in my rural hometown in South Dakota
posted on Facebook in November 2025
about the effects of food insecurity on families that he regularly sees. He explained that he keeps his stores open after midnight on SNAP disbursement days. Many of his customers, he said, are in a rush to get their “first real food in days.”
Jenalee Doom receives research funding from the National Institutes of Health.
