Being Motivated by Nutrition Is Associated With Healthy Home Food Environment of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) Recipients

Objective: To examine the relationship between food shopping motivating factors and the home food environment (HFE). Methods: Participants in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (n = 123) who were taking part in the Utah State Double-Up Food Bucks evaluation program were interviewed about their HFE, factors motivating shopping, and food security status. Composite HFE scores were derived from the Perceived Nutrition Environment Measure Survey questionnaire and food security score from the 6-item US Household Food Security Survey questionnaire. Analysis included multiple linear regression. Results: Mean age was 46 +/- 16.1 years. Regression models showed significant associations of being motivated by nutrition, education, and food security with HFE (beta = 4.70, P = .03; beta = 1.44, P = .06; and beta = 1.44, P = .06, respectively). Conclusion and Implications: In-store interventions to improve perceived nutrition importance among shoppers may be a useful tool to improve home food supplies. Further research is recommended examining the association between food shopping motivators and the HFE in a larger population.