NotesFAQContact Us
Collection
Advanced
Search Tips
Back to results
ERIC Number: ED323076
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 1989-Apr
Pages: 114
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Full Fields, Empty Cupboards: The Nutritional Status of Migrant Farmworkers in America.
Shotland, Jeffrey
This study is the result of a 1987-88 nutrition survey of Florida farmworkers, and it develops a composite picture of this group's overall health. The survey included a nutritional profile questionnaire identifying factors limiting migrants' access to an adequate diet and a survey examining their nutrient-specific dietary adequacy. The data show that migrant farmworkers experience excessive nutritional deficiencies, often compounded by chronic parasitic infestation. Available literature indicates that the migrant population often suffers from malnutrition-linked health disorders. Substandard and unsanitary housing also pose health risks. The reported mean household income among those studied was $5,667. Nearly one-third of the families reported they had either run out of food or not had enough at some point during the previous year. Fewer than 25% of those interviewed were receiving food stamps. Migrants' diets were especially deficient in vitamin A, iron, calcium, and vitamin C. Dietary inadequacies were most common among migrant females. Maintaining traditional food habits appeared to be very important among respondents, who spent significant time preparing meals. Diets of American black farmworkers were found to be the least adequate. Haitian farmworkers' diets were the most adequate. The document recommends development of a nutrition intervention campaign addressing ethno-specific dietary inadequacies. Also recommended were: improved housing inspection; greater access to public-service programs; and a nationwide effort to study, treat, and prevent parasitic infections among migrant farmworkers. This document contains 69 references. (TES)
Public Voice for Food and Health Policy, Suite 522, 1001 Connecticut Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20036 ($15.00).
Publication Type: Reports - Research; Information Analyses
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Milbank Memorial Fund, New York, NY.; Aspen Inst., Durham, NH. Rural Economic Policy Program.; Ford Foundation, New York, NY.
Authoring Institution: Public Voice for Food and Health Policy, Washington, DC.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A