Food Security Status and Food Resource Management Skills Over Time Among Rural, Low-Income Mothers

Objective: To verify whether what users of soup kitchens in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, think about a healthy diet and the challenges they face to eat healthy are associated with their household food security status. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 1,656 users of soup kitchens in Belo Horizonte. Socioeconomic and household food security data, and healthy-eating discourses were collected by a semi-structured questionnaire. The data were submitted to descriptive analyses for constructing frequency distribution tables, and to univariate analysis. Discourse analysis was based on the social representation theory. Results: To cut, reduce, avoid, not eat, eat less, and decrease carbohydrates, salt, meats, various beverages, and other foods are the most frequent changes (71.4%) that food-secure users have made or intend to make. Food-insecure users intended to eat more fruits, non-starchy vegetables, and other foods (34.4%). The main obstacles food-secure and food-insecure users face to adopt a healthier diet are lack of time (82.9%) and low income (53.5%), respectively (p<0.001). Conclusion: What users of soup kitchens in Belo Horizonte think about food and the obstacles they face to adopt a healthier diet are related to their household food security status. The results provide valuable data for effective proposals of food and nutrition education, which should act on the producers of subjectivity in this group and consider this group's food and nutrition security status.

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Food Security and Food Resource Management Outcomes of Haitian EFNEP Participants

Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior ◽

10.1016/j.jneb.2017.05.269 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 49 (7) ◽

pp. S55-S56 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Jennifer Walsh ◽

Danielle De Vries-Navarro ◽

Karla Shelnutt

Keyword(s):

Food Security ◽

Resource Management ◽

Food Resource

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Food Resource Management Education With SNAP Participation Improves Food Security

Journal of Nutrition Education and Behavior ◽

10.1016/j.jneb.2015.01.012 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 47 (4) ◽

pp. 374-378.e1 ◽

Cited By ~ 29

Author(s):

Lucia Kaiser ◽

Virginia Chaidez ◽

Susan Algert ◽

Marcel Horowitz ◽

Anna Martin ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Food Security ◽

Resource Management ◽

Management Education ◽

Food Resource

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Food Resource Management Skills Modify the Associations Between Household Food Insecurity and Child Feeding Practices in SNAP-Ed Eligible Head Start Families

Current Developments in Nutrition ◽

10.1093/cdn/nzaa043_102 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 4 (Supplement_2) ◽

pp. 251-251

Author(s):

Muzi Na ◽

Lamis Jomaa ◽

Sally Eagleton ◽

Jennifer Savage

Keyword(s):

Resource Management ◽

Head Start ◽

Food Insecurity ◽

Perceived Stress ◽

Low Income ◽

Food Resource ◽

Feeding Practices ◽

Child Feeding ◽

Assistance Program ◽

Child Feeding Practices

Abstract Objectives To explore how food security (FS) and food resource management (FRM), strategies to stretch limited food resource dollars, are associated with child feeding practices in low-income preschoolers. Methods In a cross-sectional sample of 364 Head Start households, caregivers completed the 18-item FS module, 6-item FRM behavior subscale, Comprehensive Feeding Practices Questionnaire (e.g., monitoring, restriction, food as reward), and Perceived Stress scale. Households were categorized into four food environment subgroups: FS/good FRM, FS/poor FRM, food insecure/good FRM, and food insecure/poor FRM. Multivariable linear regressions were applied to examine if feeding practices differed across FS-FRM categories, adjusting for demographic and socio-economic covariates that differed significantly by FS-FRM subgroups (race, SNAP participation, parent BMI status). For all models, FS/good FRM was the referent. Lastly, we explored the effect of adding perceived stress to the model. on feeding practices. Results 37% of households were food insecure. The use of parent monitoring, modeling, involvement, and food as reward were significantly different by FS-FRM subgroups (all p-values <0.02). After adjusting for covariates, the FS/poor FRM group used less monitoring (–0.48, 95% CI: –0.71, –0.24), modeling (–0.42, 95CI: –0.66, –0.18), and involvement in feeding (–0.56, 95% CI: –0.80, –0.31). A similar pattern emerged for the food insecure/poor FRM group compared to referent. The use of food as reward was higher in the FS/poor FRM (0.29, 95CI: 0.03, 0.55), food insecure/good FRM (0.39, 95CI: 0.09, 0.70) and food insecure/poor FRM groups (0.33, 95% CI: 0.03, 0.64). These differences observed in feeding practices became insignificant in all but one food insecure subgroup once perceived stress was added to the model. Conclusions Suboptimal child feeding is evident in low-income caregivers with poor FRM skills with or without food insecurity. Promoting FRM skills in addition to addressing FI and stress could potentially synergistically improve child feeding practices in low-income households. Funding Sources This study was funded by USDA's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) through the PA Department of Human Services (DHS). This institution is an equal opportunity provider.

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Breakfast-Skipping and Selecting Low-Nutritional-Quality Foods for Breakfast Are Common among Low-Income Urban Children, Regardless of Food Security Status

Journal of Nutrition ◽

10.3945/jn.115.225516 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 146 (3) ◽

pp. 630-636 ◽

Cited By ~ 20

Author(s):

Holly Dykstra ◽

Adam Davey ◽

Jennifer O Fisher ◽

Heather Polonsky ◽

Sandra Sherman ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Food Security ◽

Low Income ◽

Nutritional Quality ◽

Urban Children ◽

Breakfast Skipping ◽

Food Security Status

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Household Food Security Status Is Associated with Anemia Risk at Age 18 Months among Low-Income Infants in Massachusetts

Journal of the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics ◽

10.1016/j.jand.2016.06.008 ◽

2016 ◽

Vol 116 (11) ◽

pp. 1760-1766 ◽

Cited By ~ 12

Author(s):

Elizabeth Metallinos-Katsaras ◽

Rachel Colchamiro ◽

Sari Edelstein ◽

Elizabeth Siu

Keyword(s):

Food Security ◽

Low Income ◽

Household Food Security ◽

Household Food ◽

Food Security Status

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The Relative Reinforcing Value of Cookies Is Higher Among Head Start Preschoolers With Obesity

Frontiers in Psychology ◽

10.3389/fpsyg.2021.653762 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 12 ◽

Author(s):

Sally G. Eagleton ◽

Jennifer L. Temple ◽

Kathleen L. Keller ◽

Michele E. Marini ◽

Jennifer S. Savage

Keyword(s):

Food Security ◽

Individual Differences ◽

Head Start ◽

Low Income ◽

Reward Sensitivity ◽

Household Food Security ◽

Child Characteristics ◽

Household Food ◽

Food Security Status ◽

Reinforcing Value

The relative reinforcing value (RRV) of food measures how hard someone will work for a high-energy-dense (HED) food when an alternative reward is concurrently available. Higher RRV for HED food has been linked to obesity, yet this association has not been examined in low-income preschool-age children. Further, the development of individual differences in the RRV of food in early childhood is poorly understood. This cross-sectional study tested the hypothesis that the RRV of HED (cookies) to low-energy-dense (LED; fruit) food would be greater in children with obesity compared to children without obesity in a sample of 130 low-income 3- to 5-year-olds enrolled in Head Start classrooms in Central Pennsylvania. In addition, we examined individual differences in the RRV of food by child characteristics (i.e., age, sex, and reward sensitivity) and food security status. The RRV of food was measured on concurrent progressive-ratio schedules of reinforcement. RRV outcomes included the last schedule reached (breakpoint) for cookies (cookie Pmax) and fruit (fruit Pmax), the breakpoint for cookies in proportion to the total breakpoint for cookies and fruit combined (RRV cookie), and response rates (responses per minute). Parents completed the 18-item food security module to assess household food security status and the Behavioral Activation System scale to assess reward sensitivity. Pearson’s correlations and mixed models assessed associations between continuous and discrete child characteristics with RRV outcomes, respectively. Two-way mixed effects interaction models examined age and sex as moderators of the association between RRV and Body Mass Index z-scores (BMIZ). Statistical significance was defined as p < 0.05. Children with obesity (17%) had a greater cookie Pmax [F (1, 121) = 4.95, p = 0.03], higher RRV cookie [F (1, 121) = 4.28, p = 0.04], and responded at a faster rate for cookies [F (1, 121) = 17.27, p < 0.001] compared to children without obesity. Children with higher cookie response rates had higher BMIZ (r = 0.26, p < 0.01); and RRV cookie was positively associated with BMIZ for older children (5-year-olds: t = 2.40, p = 0.02) and boys (t = 2.55, p = 0.01), but not younger children or girls. The RRV of food did not differ by household food security status. Low-income children with obesity showed greater motivation to work for cookies than fruit compared to their peers without obesity. The RRV of HED food may be an important contributor to increased weight status in boys and future research is needed to better understand developmental trajectories of the RRV of food across childhood.

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