The objective of this study was to determine among a sample of very young children from low-income families receiving a child care subsidy whether children receiving child-care-provided meals had better health indicators and food security compared with children receiving parent-provided meals. It was hypothesized that young children receiving meals from their child-care provider would have better health and developmental outcomes and reduced likelihood of hospital admission from the emergency department (ED) as a result of receiving more consistent and potentially nutritious meals from their child-care provider than children relying on parent-provided meals. Further, given a sample of families with low incomes, it was hypothesized that households with young children receiving child-care-provided meals would have better food security status because the child’s access to a consistent supply of healthy food may ease the economic and anxiety burden on the family. (author abstract)