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Abstract
The environments in which people make food decisions can affect their diet quality and health. This study evaluates how access to food stores authorized to access benefits of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is related to food security, body weight, and food consumption outcomes among SNAP-participating adolescents. The analysis is based on 2007 data on eighth-grade students in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, Kindergarten Class of 1998–1999 (ECLS-K) and US Department of Agriculture administrative data on all SNAP-authorized food stores in 40 states (n = 151 155). Access is assessed based on the proximity to and density of SNAP retailers within a buffer of the participants' residences. There is substantial variation across states in the availability of SNAP-authorized food stores. Access to such retailers plays a different role in affecting nutrition outcomes of SNAP-participating adolescents depending on their residence in urban, suburban, or rural areas.