THE URBAN INSTITUTE Family events, such as a job loss, the onset of health limitations, and a change in family structure, can adversely affect economic well-being. The impact of these events may be mitigated if the family holds assets that it can draw on to maintain consumption and material well-being. This study examines the extent to which families that hold assets are better able to maintain their level of material well-being in the face of adverse events, compared with families that do not hold assets. In essence, this work looks at the role of assets in families' economic and material stability, a potential benefit of asset-building programs for low-income families. We use the 1996 and 2001 panels of the Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP) to address two key research questions: (1) What is the relationship between events and material hardship? and (2) Given that an event occurs, do families with assets have lower levels of material hardship? We answer the questions by examining the relationship between events and material hardship and by looking at the relationship between asset holdings and material hardship, given that an event occurs. We also assess the relationships between adverse events, material hardship, and asset holdings for families in different parts of the income distribution. This study builds on the substantial literature that examines income volatility (e.g.

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Neighborhoods provide resources that may affect children's cognitive and behavioral outcomes. However, it is unclear to what degree associations between neighborhood disadvantage and outcomes persist into elementary school and whether neighborhood disadvantage interacts with household disadvantage. Using data from the 2010–2011 Early Childhood Longitudinal Study‐Kindergarten Cohort (N = 15,100 children) merged with census data from the American Community Survey, this study examines associations between neighborhood poverty and children's math, reading, and behavioral outcomes at kindergarten and first and second grades. Findings indicate that as tract‐level poverty increases, children's achievement worsens after controlling for child and family characteristics. These associations persist into second grade and are stronger for children in poor versus nonpoor households. Findings suggest that neighborhood disadvantage may contribute to poorer achievement scores, particularly among children with few household resources, but that household disadvantage and other characteristics largely explain behavioral outcomes. Research and policy implications are discussed.

WHAT'S KNOWN ON THIS SUBJECT: A growing body of research suggests that the food environment affects children' s weight. Specifically, living in areas with higher-priced fast foods and soda is associated with lower weight and BMI, whereas higher fruit and vegetable prices demonstrate the opposite association. WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS:Using longitudinal data on lowerincome young children, this study finds that higher-priced fruits and vegetables are associated with higher child BMI, but not food insecurity, and that this relationship is driven by the prices of fresh fruits and vegetables. abstract OBJECTIVES: Both obesity and food insecurity are important public health problems facing young children in the United States. A lack of affordable, healthy foods is one of the neighborhood factors presumed to underlie both food insecurity and obesity among children. We examine associations between local food prices and children' s BMI, weight, and food security outcomes. METHODS:We linked data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal StudyBirth Cohort, a nationally representative study of children from infancy to age 5, to local food price data from the Council for Community and Economic Research (C2ER) Cost-of-Living Index (n = 11 700 observations). Using ordinary least squares (OLS), linear probability, and within-child fixed effects (FE) models, we exploit the variability in food price data over time and among children who move residences focusing on a subsample of households under 300% of the Federal Poverty Level. RESULTS:Results from ordinary least squares and FE models indicate that higher-priced fruits and vegetables are associated with higher child BMI, and this relationship is driven by the prices of fresh (versus frozen or canned) fruits and vegetables. In the FE models, higher-priced soft drinks are associated with a lower likelihood of being overweight, and surprisingly, higher fast food prices are associated with a greater likelihood of being overweight. CONCLUSIONS:Policies that reduce the costs of fresh fruits and vegetables may be effective in promoting healthy weight outcomes among young children. Pediatrics 2014;133:422-430

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