ABSTRACT
Food is a basic need for all people, The degree to which people have access to food influences the quantity and quality of food choices they can make, and this has an impact on quality of life, health, and illness (Drewnowski & Specter, 2004; Eikenberry, 2003; Krebs-Smith & Kantor, 2001; Nord et al., 2003; U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2000), A disability, as defined by the “Americans with Disabilities Act” (“Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990”, 1990), means a physical or mental impairment (or being regarded as having such) that substantially limits one or more of the major life activities of such individuals. However, with the exception of the geriatrics literature (Lee & Frongilio, 2001; Roe, 1990; Smith, 1991; Wolfe et al., 2003; Wylie et al., 1999) and occasional international studies (Guilford et al., 2003), the relationship between physical disabilities and food access, although acknowledged (Campbell, 1991; Olson et al., 2004), has mostly received only cursory examination. Studies examining food access and health condition/status are more common. Stuff et al. (2004) found an association between household food insecurity and selfreported health status in adults in the Lower Mississippi Delta region. A Canadian study by Vozoris and Tarasuk (2003) found that individuals from food-insufficient households had significantly higher odds of reporting poor/fair health, of having poor functional health, restricted activity, poor social support, and higher likelihood of chronic diseases and major depression.
