<http://schema.org/articleBody>
"At the beginning of this November, deep cuts to SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps) went into effect nationwide, just in time for the holidays. With monthly benefits for a single person now at $189 per person, or $2.10 a meal, buying and preparing a turkey dinner may not be an option for the 47 million people who rely on the program to eat. To make matters worse, additional SNAP benefits provided by the 2009 stimulus bill expired, meaning another cut of $36 per month for a family of four. What does this mean for women? &amp;quot;At a very basic level, there are more women who rely on food stamps than men. They rely on them to help them feed themselves, their families, and to take care of their parents,&amp;quot; explained Lindsey Spindle, chief communications officer of Share Our Strength, a nonprofit seeking to end hunger in America. &amp;quot;Of all nonelderly adults in SNAP, 62 percent are women.&amp;quot; As a result of the cuts, many women skip meals so others can eat, and many have lost roughly 25 meals a month. &amp;quot;What we find in our research is that when someone is going to have to do without, it&amp;#x27;s usually women,&amp;quot; says Spindle. &amp;quot;They sacrifice their meals for their children, for their spouse, for their parents. So what we&amp;#x27;re anticipating with these cuts is that families will be left vulnerable, but women in particular will do a lot to shield their families.&amp;quot; This time of year can be particularly painful. Most women, according to Spindle, &amp;quot;take great pride in what they do and providing for their family, it&amp;#x27;s a season of thanks and people coming together, it&amp;#x27;s a time of joy and to reflect...there is a psychological element that women feel even more when they&amp;#x27;re in a situation where they cannot provide for their children.&amp;quot; It&amp;#x27;s also the time of year when heating bills go up and some women are faced with paying bills, or eating. Heartbreaking. Is there a way to help? Yes, both short term for the holidays and long term to keep existing SNAP benefits in place&amp;amp;mdash;the House version of the new farm bill would cut an additional $40 billion from food stamp programs. What You Can Do Now To give nationally, try the following charities. Share Our Strength Feeding America Meals on Wheels To find a local food bank, try searching Feeding America&amp;#x27;s finder, or Charity Navigator. You&amp;#x27;ll likely be able to donate or give canned goods, but call or check their website to see what they need. Check with your local market to see if they&amp;#x27;re doing a food drive. Whole Foods Market&amp;#x27;s Feed Four More program allows you to buy a family breakfast, lunch, or dinner when checking out, and many other retailers offer similar programs. Also check with your local houses of worship to see if they&amp;#x27;re coordinating a food drive or need help delivering meals to the homebound (even if you&amp;#x27;re not a member, most churches, synagogues, and other houses of worship are happy for the help). "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.glamour.com/inspired/blogs/the-conversation/2013/11/how-snap-cuts-impact-women--->