scholarly journals COVID-19 affected the food behavior of different age groups in Chinese households

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. e0260244
Author(s):  
Ting Chen ◽  
Chong Wang ◽  
Zhenling Cui ◽  
Xiaojie Liu ◽  
Jun Jiang ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Supply ◽  
Age Groups ◽  
Household Food Security ◽  
Grocery Shopping ◽  
Chinese Consumers ◽  
Supply And Distribution ◽  
Management Interventions ◽  
Household Food ◽  
Extra Food ◽  
Shopping Trips

The COVID-19 pandemic brought profound changes to all corners of society and affected people in every aspect of their lives. This survey-based study investigated how household food related matters such as food sourcing and consumption behaviors of 2,126 Chinese consumers in different age groups changed approximately two months into the COVID-19 quarantine. A new food sourcing mechanism, community-based online group grocery-ordering (CoGGO), was widely adopted by households, particularly among the youngest group studied (18–24 years of age). The same group showed a higher confidence in the food supply system during the quarantine and a greater propensity for weight gain while staying-at-home. The more mature age group (≥35 years of age) showed heightened vigilance and awareness, with fewer grocery-shopping trips, a higher tendency for purchasing extra food, and less tendency to waste food. Survey findings of the new food-sourcing mechanism, attitudes to food, and changes in behavior among different age groups provide valuable insights to guide policies and management interventions to address matters pertaining to food supply and distribution, food access and household food security, and food waste reduction.

scholarly journals Household Food Dynamics and Food System Resilience Amid the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Cross-National Comparison of China and the United States

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhengxia Dou ◽  
Darko Stefanovski ◽  
David Galligan ◽  
Margaret Lindem ◽  
Paul Rozin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food System ◽  
The United States ◽  
Household Food Security ◽  
Grocery Shopping ◽  
Functional Stability ◽  
Household Food ◽  
National Comparison ◽  
Chinese Cohort ◽  
System Resilience ◽  
Cross National

The COVID-19 pandemic is a “perfect storm” that is testing the resilience and functional stability of the food system, as it ultimately affects household food dynamics and consumer food experiences. This cross-national survey-based study examined in real time how the COVID-19 pandemic impacted food-centric matters in 1,732 Chinese and 1,547 U.S. households during the stay-at-home directives. Both cohorts reported increased efficiency in the use of food, families spending more time cooking and eating together, and more prudent use of food with less waste. Food purchasing patterns shifted from frequent trips to the store to dramatic increases in online ordering. A small proportion (2% U.S. and 11% Chinese respondents) reported clinically significant weight gains of >4.5 kg. Household food security weakened, with large increases in people worrying about or experiencing food shortage. Collective grocery-shopping experiences by survey respondents indicated that the functional stability of food supply systems remained steady; all food types were somewhat available, except for noticeably higher prices widely reported by the Chinese cohort. This study offers insights into food system resilience when facing the pandemic and sheds light on future food patterns as well as long-term questions for additional research about how people make decisions and food behavioral changes at times of crisis.

Social and Cultural Relations in Economic Action: The Embeddedness of Food Security in Rural Malawi Amidst the AIDS Epidemic

2000 ◽  
Vol 32 (2) ◽  
pp. 345-360 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mike Mathambo Mtika
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Food Supply ◽  
Burden Of Illness ◽  
Rural Households ◽  
Household Food Security ◽  
Cultural Relations ◽  
Social Actors ◽  
Goods And Services ◽  
Aids Epidemic ◽  
Household Food

In its prescription of how food security among rural households can be attained and how problems such as AIDS can be addressed, the neoclassical utiliarian view envisions individual house-holds making atomistic decisions in the use of their resources, goods, and services (entitlements). In exploring the effect of illness and death on household food security in rural Malawi amidst the AIDS epidemic, I find that the embeddedness view explains more convincingly how rural households secure their food supply and deal with illness and death. This view suggests that individual households' use of their entitlements indeed contributes to household food security and the fight against illness and death, but that such use is shaped by the entitlement system that embodies collective beliefs, rules, expectations, and obligations. Social and cultural relations between households, anchored in the entitlement system, enable households to share their entitlements through reciprocity and redistribution, thereby contributing to collective food security and diffusing the burden of illness and death across households. Rural Malawians are thus not isolated actors envisioned by the utilitarian view but social actors who constantly engage in negotiations with each other, sharing their entitlements, and thus collectively securing their food supply and diffusing burdens. Food security then gets compromised when burdens reach a threshold that fractures social and cultural ties thus disabling households from sharing entitlements. AIDS is a threat to food security in rural Malawi because of its potential to make the spread of illness and death burdens so extensive that households would be unable to share their entitlements.

scholarly journals A Food Insecurity Systematic Review: Experience from Malaysia

Nutrients ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 945
Author(s):  
Norhasmah Sulaiman ◽  
Heather Yeatman ◽  
Joanna Russell ◽  
Leh Shii Law
Keyword(s):  
Risk Factors ◽  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Coping Strategies ◽  
Low Income ◽  
Meta Analysis ◽  
Welfare Recipient ◽  
Vulnerable Groups ◽  
Household Food Security ◽  
Household Food Insecurity ◽  
Household Food

Living free from hunger is a basic human right. However, some communities still experience household food insecurity. This systematic literature review explored different aspects of household food insecurity in Malaysia including vulnerable groups, prevalence, risk factors, coping strategies, and the consequences of food insecurity. The review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines. Thirty-three relevant articles were selected from scientific databases such as CINAHL, Pubmed and Google Scholar, scrutiny of reference lists, and personal communication with experts in the field. The prevalence of household food insecurity in Malaysia was unexpectedly reported as high, with affected groups including Orang Asli, low-income household/welfare-recipient households, university students, and the elderly. Demographic risk factors and socioeconomic characteristics included larger household, living in poverty, and low education. Coping strategies were practices to increase the accessibility of food in their households. Consequences of household food insecurity included psychological, dietary (macro- and micronutrient intakes), nutritional status, and health impacts. In conclusion, this review confirmed that household food insecurity in Malaysia continues to exist. Nevertheless, extensive and active investigations are encouraged to obtain a more holistic and comprehensive picture pertaining to household food security in Malaysia.

scholarly journals High food insecurity in Latinx families and associated COVID-19 infection in the Greater Bay Area, California

BMC Nutrition ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Milagro Escobar ◽  
Andrea DeCastro Mendez ◽  
Maria Romero Encinas ◽  
Sofia Villagomez ◽  
Janet M. Wojcicki
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Food Insecurity ◽  
San Francisco ◽  
Employment Status ◽  
The United States ◽  
Household Food Security ◽  
Bay Area ◽  
Household Food ◽  
History Of ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background Food insecurity impacts nearly one-in-four Latinx households in the United States and has been exacerbated by the novel coronavirus or COVID-19 pandemic. Methods We examined the impact of COVID-19 on household and child food security in three preexisting, longitudinal, Latinx urban cohorts in the San Francisco Bay Area (N = 375 households, 1875 individuals). Households were initially recruited during pregnancy and postpartum at Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital (ZSFG) and UCSF Benioff prior to the COVID-19 pandemic. For this COVID-19 sub-study, participants responded to a 15-min telephonic interview. Participants answered 18 questions from the US Food Security Food Module (US HFSSM) and questions on types of food consumption, housing and employment status, and history of COVID-19 infection as per community or hospital-based testing. Food security and insecurity levels were compared with prior year metrics. Results We found low levels of household food security in Latinx families (by cohort: 29.2%; 34.2%; 60.0%) and child food security (56.9%, 54.1%, 78.0%) with differences between cohorts explained by self-reported levels of education and employment status. Food security levels were much lower than those reported previously in two cohorts where data had been recorded from prior years. Reported history of COVID-19 infection in households was 4.8% (95% Confidence Interval (CI); 1.5–14.3%); 7.2% (95%CI, 3.6–13.9%) and 3.5% (95%CI, 1.7–7.2%) by cohort and was associated with food insecurity in the two larger cohorts (p = 0.03; p = 0.01 respectively). Conclusions Latinx families in the Bay Area with children are experiencing a sharp rise in food insecurity levels during the COVID-19 epidemic. Food insecurity, similar to other indices of poverty, is associated with increased risk for COVID-19 infection. Comprehensive interventions are needed to address food insecurity in Latinx populations and further studies are needed to better assess independent associations between household food insecurity, poor nutritional health and risk of COVID-19 infection.

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