Description

FSBALCH indicates whether household was unable to feed the children a balanced meal during the past year because they could not afford the food. This question is only asked in households with children under 17. Households are also asked whether this occurred in the past 30 days FSBALCHMO.

This question is one of the 8 items used to construct the 12-month child food security scale, FSSTATUSC and is also used to determine household food security status FSSTATUS. Only households with incomes below 185% of poverty and higher income households that indicate food access problems in response to preliminary screening questions are asked FSBALCH and other questions in the Food Sufficiency and Food Security section of the supplement.

Comparability

This variable is generally comparable over available years since 1995, and the universe is generally consistent since 1998. Prior to 1998, the screening procedures that determined which responding households were screened into the food security assessment changed each year. Researchers will need to use FSSCREEN to identify a consistent analytic sample when including data before 1998.

Universe

Flags

Unharmonized Variables