Elderly Held Lacking Food, Means to Get Help

Many of the elderly poor do not have enough to eat and do not know where to get help, according to a study by a group working to eliminate hunger.

The nonprofit Food Research and Action Center surveyed 3,602 elderly persons using public and private assistance programs, and it found that more than half of them cannot afford all the food they need.

“Behind the hard, cold statistics on poverty, there are real people with real problems,” said Robert J. Fersh, executive director of the anti-hunger group.

‘Should Be Concerned’

He told a news conference Monday that “we, as a society, should be concerned about how people in their later years are treated.”

His group released a report on its survey, in which elderly people were asked to answer a dozen questions about their eating habits.

The study also made a series of recommendations, including improved outreach programs for federal food stamps, so that the elderly will know about eligibility and how to apply.

Also suggested were increased financing for programs for the elderly, including community feeding programs and home-delivered meals and other nutrition efforts.

A major problem, Fersh said, is that many of the elderly who would be eligible for federal food stamps, do not know it.

His group interviewed people ranging in age from 60 to 99 at group meal program sites, private homes, senior centers, retirement and nursing homes, free cheese lines, food pantries, soup kitchens, health clinics and shelters for the homeless.

Among their findings:

--Only 37.6% reported always having enough money to buy the food they need.

--About 35% said they usually eat fewer than three meals a day, and 5.4% said they were without food for more than three days in the last month.