Trends in Food Insecurity in the United States from 2011-2017: Disparities by Age, Sex, Race/Ethnicity, and Income. Popul Health Manag 2021 Aug;24(4):496-501
Date
09/18/2020Pubmed ID
32941115Pubmed Central ID
PMC8403212DOI
10.1089/pop.2020.0123Scopus ID
2-s2.0-85101318774 (requires institutional sign-in at Scopus site) 40 CitationsAbstract
The number of individuals in the United States who report food insecurity doubled between 2005 and 2012, with little research investigating possible disparities across time in food-insecure populations. The aim of this study was to investigate trends in food insecurity between 2001-2017 by sex, race/ethnicity, income, and age. Adults participating in the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) between 2011-2017 were included in the study. Food insecurity was dichotomized based on affirmative responses to the Food Security Survey Module. Statistical analysis included logistic regression to investigate trends in food insecurity over time by each demographic variable (age, sex, race/ethnicity, income) adjusted by survey year and demographic variables. After adjustment, those ages ≥65 years were 39% less likely (OR = 0.61, 95% CI [0.57,0.65]) to report food insecurity compared to those ages 18-34; females were 23% more likely to be food insecure than males (OR = 1.23, 95% CI [1.19,1.27]); non-Hispanic blacks were 1.7 times more likely (OR = 1.69, 95% CI [1.62,1.76]) to be food insecure than non-Hispanic whites; and a clear gradient existed by income, with lower incomes more likely to be food insecure. Disparities in food insecurity exist across age, race/ethnicity, sex, and income and were consistent over time. These results suggest that targeted programs may be necessary to decrease food insecurity in particularly vulnerable subpopulations, and barriers to access and use of existing programs need to be investigated.
Author List
Walker RJ, Garacci E, Dawson AZ, Williams JS, Ozieh M, Egede LEAuthors
Aprill Z. Dawson PhD, MPH Assistant Professor in the Medicine department at Medical College of WisconsinLeonard E. Egede MD Center Director, Chief, Professor in the Medicine department at Medical College of Wisconsin
Mukoso Nwamaka Ozieh MD Assistant Professor in the Medicine department at Medical College of Wisconsin
Rebekah Walker PhD Associate Professor in the Medicine department at Medical College of Wisconsin
Joni Williams MD, MPH Associate Professor in the Medicine department at Medical College of Wisconsin
MESH terms used to index this publication - Major topics in bold
AdolescentAdult
Aged
Cross-Sectional Studies
Female
Food Supply
Humans
Income
Male
United States
Young Adult
