scholarly journals Household Food Insecurity Scores are Higher among Adults Infected with COVID-19: A Cross-Sectional Online Study among an Iranian Population

Author(s):  
Naser Kalantari ◽  
Hassan Eini-Zinab ◽  
Neda Ezzeddin ◽  
Nastaran Miri

Introduction: Food insecurity has negative impacts on health, including the function of the immune system. The association between food insecurity and COVID-19 infection rates has not been fully understood. This study aimed to examine whether food-insecure households are more vulnerable to COVID-19 infection. Materials and Methods: This online cross-sectional study was conducted on 2,871 Iranian adults (31 provinces), from August to September 2020. Demographic and socio-economic information was collected using a questionnaire. The Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) was used for assessing household food insecurity. The data analysis was performed by SPSS.22, using Chi-square test, ANOVA test, and Multinomial Logistic Regression Model. Results: The findings indicated that healthcare personnel were at higher risk of COVID-19 (CI = 1.90, 7.05; OR = 3.66; P < 0.001). It was also shown that HFIAS scores were significantly higher among infected people compared to non-infected (CI = 1.00, 1.05; OR = 1.03; P < 0.05). Women were at lower risk of infection compared to men (CI = 0.41, 0.87; OR = 0.60; P < 0.05). Conclusions: Based on the results, in addition to long-term policies to improve food security, policymakers are recommended to implement short-term policies to reduce the vulnerability of the community to COVID-19 virus.

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Naser Kalantari ◽  
Neda Ezzeddin ◽  
Hassan Eini-Zinab

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the association of food insecurity score with the status of Covid-19 infection. Design: An online cross-sectional study. Demographic and socio-economic information were collected by questionnaire. Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) was used in assessing household food security status. The analysis data was done by IBM SPSS 22.0, using Chi-square test, ANOVA test and Multinomial logistic regression model. Setting: Iran Participants: 2871 Iranian adults (over 18 years old) Results: findings indicated that men [OR=0.60, CI= (0.41, 0.87), P<0.05], and healthcare personnel [OR=3.66, CI= (1.90, 7.05), P<0.001] were at higher risk for Covid-19. It was also shown that the food insecurity score is significantly higher among infected people compared to not-infected [OR=1.03, CI= (1.00, 1.05), P<0.05]. The comparison between suspected and not-infected individuals only indicated the significant differences in perceived COVID-19 prevention score, which was higher among not-infected people [OR=0.88, CI=(0.84,0.93), P<0.001]. Conclusion: Based on the results, in addition to long-term policies to improve food security, policymakers and planners need to plan and implement short-term policies (financial or food assistance) to reduce society vulnerability to the Covid-19.


2021 ◽  
pp. 1-11
Author(s):  
Rosa Elena Ponce-Alcala ◽  
Jose Luis Ramirez-Garcia Luna ◽  
Teresa Shamah-Levy ◽  
Hugo Melgar-Quiñonez

Abstract Objective: To examine the association between household food insecurity and overweight, obesity and abdominal obesity in Mexican adults. Design: Cross-sectional study. Setting: We analysed data from the Mexican Halfway National Health and Nutrition Survey 2016, a nationally representative survey that accounted for rural and urban areas in four regions of Mexico: North, Centre, Mexico City and South. Participants: Adults from 20 to 59 years old (n 5456, which represents 45 804 210 individuals at the national level). Results: 70·8 % of the Mexican adults had some degree of household food insecurity. This situation showed larger proportions (P < 0·05) among indigenous people, those living in a rural area, in the Southern region or the lowest socio-economic quintiles. The prevalence of obesity and abdominal obesity was higher in female adults (P < 0·001), with the highest proportions occurring among those experiencing severe household food insecurity. Among women, mean BMI and waist circumference were higher as household food insecurity levels increased (P < 0·001). According to multivariate logistic regression models, severe household food insecurity showed to be positively associated with obesity (OR: 2·36; P = 0·001) in Mexican adult females. Conclusions: Our findings confirm the association between household food insecurity and obesity among Mexican women. Given the socio-demographic characteristics of the food-insecure population, it is alarming that prevailing socio-economic inequalities in the country might also be contributing to the likelihood of obesity. Therefore, it is crucial to maintain and bolster surveillance systems to track both problems and implement adequate policies and interventions.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Ariya ◽  
Jalal Karimi ◽  
Somayeh Abolghasemi ◽  
Zeinab Hematdar ◽  
Mohammad Mehdi Naghizadeh ◽  
...  

AbstractThe World Health Organization (WHO) has declared the Corona pandemic as a public health emergency. This pandemic affects the main pillars of food security. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between food insecurity and the probability of hospitalization and the length of the recovery period after getting COVID-19. The cross-sectional study was performed through the census on COVID-19 patients diagnosed in Fasa, Iran. Informed consent, demographic, and food security questionnaire were completed over the phone. Then, all patients were followed up until recovery. Data were analyzed using SPSS26 and Chi-square test, t-test, and logistic regression (P < 0.05). In this study, 219 COVID-19 patients [100 (54.7%) male and 119 (54.3%) female] with a mean age of 40.05 ± 15.54 years old were examined. Possibility of hospitalization and the length of the recovery period of more than one month was significantly longer in the food-insecure group (P = 0.001) and (P = 0.37), respectively, but the mean length of hospital stay in the two groups was not significantly different (P = 0.76). After adjusting for all confounding variables, people with food insecurity were 3.9 times more likely to be hospitalized than those with food security. Overall, we observed that food-insecure people were significantly more likely to be hospitalized than the secure group.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fatemeh Khorram Rouz ◽  
Azam Doustmohammadian ◽  
Omid Eslami ◽  
Majid Khadem-Rezaiyan ◽  
Parisa Pourmohammadi ◽  
...  

Abstract ObjectiveThe aim of this study was to assess the relationship between household food insecurity (HFI) with food and nutrition literacy (FNLIT) in a sample of Iranian children. This cross sectional study was performed on 315 children aged 9 to 12 years recruited from the primary schools throughout Mashhad, Iran. The Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) was used to assess the HFI. Also, overall FNLIT score and its sub-categories were evaluated using a validated 40-item questionnaire.Results The prevalence of HFI in the total sample was about 56 %. Also, almost 14 % of students had a low FNLIT score. Food insecure children had significantly lower levels of FNLT and some subscales including nutrition knowledge, food choice literacy, and food label literacy than the food-secure subjects, moreover, they had a higher likelihood of having low FNLIT score (OR = 2.89, CI: 1.03-8.09; p = 0.04). In conclusion, there is a negative association between HFI and FNLIT in children. Further studies to confirm this finding are needed.


2014 ◽  
Vol 18 (2) ◽  
pp. 251-258 ◽  
Author(s):  
Farah Naja ◽  
Nahla Hwalla ◽  
Talar Fossian ◽  
Dina Zebian ◽  
Lara Nasreddine

AbstractObjectiveTo assess the validity and reliability of the Arabic version of the Household Food Insecurity Access Scale (HFIAS) in rural Lebanon.DesignA cross-sectional study on a sample of households with at least one child aged 0–2 years. In a one-to-one interview, participants completed an adapted Arabic version of the HFIAS. In order to evaluate the validity of the HFIAS, basic sociodemographic information, anthropometric measurements of the mother and child, and dietary intake data of the child were obtained. In order to examine reproducibility, the HFIAS was re-administered after 3 months.SettingRural Lebanon.SubjectsMother and child pairs (n 150).ResultsFactor analysis of HFIAS items revealed two factors: ‘insufficient food quality’ and ‘insufficient food quantity’. Using Pearson's correlation, food insecurity was inversely associated with mother's and father's education levels, number of cars and electrical appliances in the household, income, weight-for-age and length-for-age of the child and the child's dietary adequacy. In contrast, mother's BMI and crowding index were positively associated with food insecurity scores (P < 0·05 for all correlations). Cronbach's α of the scale was 0·91. A moderate correlation was observed between the two administrations of the questionnaire (intra-class correlation = 0·58; P < 0·05).ConclusionsOur findings indicated that the adapted Arabic version of the HFIAS is a valid and reliable tool to assess food insecurity in rural Lebanon, lending further evidence to the utility of the HFIAS in assessing food insecurity in culturally diverse populations.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-7 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zinat Mortazavi ◽  
Ahmad Reza Dorosty ◽  
Mohammad Reza Eshraghian ◽  
Mohtasham Ghaffari ◽  
Alireza Ansari-Moghaddam ◽  
...  

Background.Today, more than one billion people globally suffer from poverty and food insecurity. This study aimed to determine the severity of and factors related to household food insecurity in Zahedan, Southeastern Iran.Methods.This cross-sectional study was conducted on a total of 2,160 households between November 2014 and December 2015. Demographic and socioeconomic data were collected through interviewing the household mothers. Household food security status was assessed through the USDA 18-item questionnaire. The data were analyzed using chi-square test, one-way ANOVA, and logistic regression model.Results.Total food insecurity in the households investigated was 58.8%. There were significant associations (P<0.001) between household food insecurity status and the socioeconomic status of the households, ethnicity, education, age, and employment status of the head of the household and the mother of the household.Discussion.The results showed that more than half of the households examined suffer from food insecurity. Interventions to improve the food security status of people should be designed and implemented to improve people’s knowledge, skills, and attitudes related to healthy eating and food preparation. People’s access to healthy foods and knowledge of how to select healthy foods (especially on a limited budget) should also be improved.


2018 ◽  
Vol 22 (4) ◽  
pp. 697-705 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yunhee Kang ◽  
Kristen M Hurley ◽  
Julie Ruel-Bergeron ◽  
Assumpta Bou Monclus ◽  
Rachel Oemcke ◽  
...  

AbstractObjectiveTo examine the association between household food insecurity and dietary diversity in the past 24h (dietary diversity score (DDS, range: 0–9); minimum dietary diversity (MDD, consumption of three or more food groups); consumption of nine separate food groups) among pregnant and lactating women in rural Malawi.DesignCross-sectional study.SettingTwo rural districts in Central Malawi.SubjectsPregnant (n 589) and lactating (n 641) women.ResultsOf surveyed pregnant and lactating women, 66·7 and 68·6 %, respectively, experienced moderate or severe food insecurity and only 32·4 and 28·1 %, respectively, met MDD. Compared with food-secure pregnant women, those who reported severe food insecurity had a 0·36 lower DDS (P<0·05) and more than threefold higher risk (OR; 95 % CI) of not consuming meat/fish (3·19; CI 1·68, 6·03). The risk of not consuming eggs (3·77; 1·04, 13·7) was higher among moderately food-insecure pregnant women. Compared with food-secure lactating women, those who reported mild, moderate and severe food insecurity showed a 0·36, 0·44 and 0·62 lower DDS, respectively (all P<0·05). The risk of not achieving MDD was higher among moderately (1·95; 1·06, 3·59) and severely (2·82; 1·53, 5·22) food-insecure lactating women. The risk of not consuming meat/fish and eggs increased in a dose–response manner among lactating women experiencing mild (1·75; 1·01, 3·03 and 2·81; 1·09, 7·25), moderate (2·66; 1·47, 4·82 and 3·75; 1·40, 10·0) and severe (5·33; 2·63, 10·8 and 3·47; 1·19, 10·1) food insecurity.ConclusionsAddressing food insecurity during and after pregnancy needs to be considered when designing nutrition programmes aiming to increase dietary diversity in rural Malawi.


2014 ◽  
Vol 27 (4) ◽  
pp. 405-412 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mariana de Morais Cordeiro ◽  
Estelamaris Tronco Monego ◽  
Karine Anusca Martins

Objective: To characterize the nutritional status of quilombola students and determine the food security status of their households. Methods: This is a cross-sectional study with students aged six to nineteen years from quilombola communities in twelve municipalities of Goiás categorized by age, gender, school location (urban/rural), and nutritional status based on the World Health Organization's height-for-age and body mass index for-age charts. The Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale was used for measuring food (in)security in their families. Descriptive and association analyses were conducted using the Chi-square test at a significance level of 5% (p<0.05). Results: In a sample of 226 students, overweight (17.2%) was more common than malnutrition (1.3%), especially in students attending urban schools (28.2%) (p<0.05). Most (75.2%) quilombola families experienced food insecurity, especially mild. Conclusion: The apparent contradiction of excess weight and food insecurity occurring simultaneously indicates the need of revising the study instruments and the causal network that identify poverty.


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