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HOMELESSNESS. No nation is without its homeless. In the United States alone, between 280,000 and 600,000 men, women, and children are homeless each night, according to differing estimates. They are without permanent lodging because of poverty, lack of affordable housing, low wages, substance abuse, mental illness, or domestic violence. In many other countries, however, civil unrest, war, and famines bring about homelessness. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, there were more than eleven million homeless worldwide.

Paramount among the problems facing the homeless are poor nutrition and hunger. They can be life-threatening, especially among refugees. Protein-energy malnutrition is a major contributory cause of death among newly displaced refugees. International relief organizations and the United Nations set up refugee camps and make the distribution of nutritionally adequate food rations a high priority. The homeless in the United States often do not experience such extreme food deprivations. However, many are often chronically undernourished. Compared to other groups at risk for hunger, the homeless are at greatest risk, being ten times more likely to go without food for a day compared to the poor. Few are able to obtain three meals a day, and many go at least one day a month without any food. Scant research indicates that many have caloric intakes far below recommended levels and may have inadequate intakes of calcium, folacin, iron, magnesium, or zinc. Their low-calorie diets, which tend to be high in fat, cholesterol, and sodium and inadequate in essential nutrients, may further compromise the already poor health status of the homeless.

While many rely on homeless shelters, especially in winter months, a large number find refuge in cars, abandoned buildings, on grates, in parks, or, other outdoor places. Most have been without a fixed and regular nighttime residence for more than one year. Lacking a stable home environment and cooking and storage facilities exacerbates their inability to obtain an adequate, varied, and healthy diet. While it is not uncommon to see a homeless person panhandling or scavenging for food through trash cans, most depend on soup kitchens and shelters for the major portion of their daily nourishment. Soup kitchens and shelters typically serve one meal a day on-site, although some shelters permit their residents to prepare and cook their own meals. Those who are substance abusers or have mental health problems are more likely to resort to obtaining food from trash cans or begging, compared to those without these health conditions.

Participation in the Food Stamp Program, the government's largest antihunger program, is unusually low among the homeless. While homeless advocates speculate that most of the homeless are eligible, they argue that barriers such as documentation of identity or administrative burdens prevent many from participating. The difficulty of making effective use of food stamp benefits without adequate cooking and storage facilities is also a barrier. While the Food Stamp Program does permit states to contract with restaurants to serve meals at concessional prices to the homeless, such authorizations are uncommon among states.

See also Body Composition; Caloric Intake; Class, Social; Food Banks; Food Pantries; Food Politics: United States; Food Stamps; Food Supply, Food Shortages; Hunger, Physiology of; Poverty; Soup Kitchens.

Patricia McGrath Morris