scholarly journals Exploring the relationship between food insecurity with hunger and academic progression at a large South African University

2021 ◽  
Vol 35 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
F. Wagner ◽  
T. Kaneli ◽  
M. Masango
Keyword(s):  
Food Insecurity ◽  
South African ◽  
Academic Progression ◽  
The Relationship

scholarly journals The relationship between antenatal food insecurity, fetal and postnatal growth: findings from the South African National Income Dynamics Study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abigail Joan Harper ◽  
Alan Rothberg ◽  
Esnat Chirwa ◽  
Winnie Sambu ◽  
Sumaya Mall
Keyword(s):  
Food Insecurity ◽  
South African ◽  
Low Birthweight ◽  
Dietary Diversity ◽  
National Income ◽  
Composite Measure ◽  
Severe Stunting ◽  
Child Health Outcomes ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Height For Age

Abstract Background Food insecurity during pregnancy has been associated with adverse child health outcomes including low birthweight and stunting. There are few studies that have examined the relationships between food insecurity and child health outcomes in low and middle income countries. This study aims to fill the gap by examining the relationship between food insecurity, low birthweight and stunting in children using a longitudinal sample of South African women and their children. Methods The primary exposure is a multidimensional, composite measure of household food insecurity that comprises three dimensions and six indicators. The primary outcome is a dichotomous measure of child LBW (≤ 2500 g) The secondary outcome is childhood stunting (height for age ≤2SD of the median) and severe stunting (height for age ≤3SD of the median) in the first five years of life. We used both unadjusted and adjusted regression models. Source data for the analysis came from the population-based, longitudinal data collected for wave one and three of the National Income Dynamics Study (2008 and 2012). Results Birthweight data were available for 1381 children and stunting data were available for 1444 children. The prevalence of LBW in the sample was 13.64%. The prevalence of stunting and severe stunting was 16.46% and 11.87%. The composite measure was not associated with low birthweight but was associated with underweight maternal BMI, a risk factor for low birthweight. Household dietary diversity, food expenditure below the Stats SA poverty line and the composite measure was associated with stunting and severe stunting in bivariate analyses. The measure was associated with severe stunting in the final model. Conclusions The finding that household food insecurity is associated with severe stunting for children in the first five years of life highlights the importance of adequate food and nutrition for vulnerable children in South Africa. Future studies can elucidate the relationship between antenatal food insecurity, low birthweight and other child outcomes. Policy interventions that focus on early childhood growth through alleviating food insecurity and addressing other drivers of malnutrition such as improving maternal education and dietary diversity can break the cycle of poor growth outcomes.

scholarly journals The relationship between maternal food insecurity, fetal and postnatal growth: findings from the South African National Income Dynamics Study

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abigail Joan Harper ◽  
Alan Rothberg ◽  
Esnat Chirwa ◽  
Winnie Sambu ◽  
Sumaya Mall
Keyword(s):  
Food Insecurity ◽  
South African ◽  
Low Birthweight ◽  
Dietary Diversity ◽  
National Income ◽  
Composite Measure ◽  
Severe Stunting ◽  
Child Health Outcomes ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Height For Age

Abstract Background: Food insecurity during pregnancy and postnatally has been associated with adverse child health outcomes including low birthweight and stunting. There are few studies that have examined the relationships between food insecurity and child health outcomes in low and middle income countries. This study aims to fill the gap by examining the relationship between food insecurity, low birthweight and stunting in children using a longitudinal sample of South African women and their offspring.Methods: The primary exposure is a multidimensional, composite measure of household food insecurity that comprises three dimensions and six indicators. The primary outcome is a dichotomous measure of child LBW (≤2500g) The secondary outcome is childhood stunting (height for age £2SD of the median) and severe stunting (height for age £3SD of the median) in the first five years of life. We used both unadjusted and adjusted regression models. Source data for the analysis came from the population-based, longitudinal data collected for wave one and three of the National Income Dynamics Study (2008 and 2012). Results: Birthweight data were available for 1381 children and stunting data were available for 1444 children. The prevalence of LBW in the sample was 13.64 %. The prevalence of stunting and severe stunting was 16.46 % and 11.87 %. The composite measure was not associated with low birthweight but was associated with underweight maternal BMI, a risk factor for low birthweight. Household dietary diversity, food expenditure below the Stats SA poverty line and the composite measure was associated with stunting and severe stunting in bivariate analyses. The measure was associated with severe stunting in the final model.Conclusions: The finding that household food insecurity is associated with severe stunting for children in the first five years of life highlights the importance of adequate food and nutrition for vulnerable children in South Africa. Future studies can elucidate the relationship between maternal food insecurity, low birthweight and other child outcomes. Policy interventions that focus on early childhood growth through alleviating food insecurity and addressing other drivers of malnutrition such as improving maternal education and dietary diversity can break the cycle of poor growth outcomes.

Co-creating the Psychological “White Picket Fence”: Three Gay Couples’ Relationship Reconfiguration

2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Prevan Moodley ◽  
Francois Rabie
Keyword(s):  
Grounded Theory ◽  
South African ◽  
Gay Couples ◽  
Core Category ◽  
Picket Fence ◽  
Open Relationship ◽  
The Individual ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Porous Boundaries

Many gay couples engage in nonmonogamous relationships. Ideas about nonmonogamy have historically been theorised as individual pathology and indicating relational distress. Unlike mixed-sex couples, boundaries for gay couples are often not determined by sexual exclusivity. These relationships are built along a continuum of open and closed, and sexual exclusivity agreements are not restricted to binaries, thus requiring innovation and re-evaluation. Three white South African gay couples were each jointly interviewed about their open relationship, specifically about how this is negotiated. In contrast to research that uses the individual to investigate this topic, this study recruited dyads. The couples recalled the initial endorsement of heteronormative romantic constructions, after which they shifted to psychological restructuring. The dyad, domesticated through the stock image of a white picket fence, moved to a renewed arrangement, protected by “rules” and imperatives. Abbreviated grounded theory strategies led to a core category, “co-creating porous boundaries”, and two themes. First, the couple jointly made heteronormative ideals porous and, second, they reconfigured the relationship through dyadic protection. The overall relationship ideology associated with the white picket fence remained intact despite the micro-innovations through which the original heteronormative patterning was reconfigured.

Food Insecurity Partially Mediates the Association Between Drug Use and Depressive Symptoms among Men who have Sex with Men in Los Angeles, California

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-26
Author(s):  
David A. Wiss ◽  
Marjan Javanbakht ◽  
Michael J. Li ◽  
Michael Prelip ◽  
Robert Bolan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Security ◽  
Depressive Symptoms ◽  
High Risk ◽  
Los Angeles ◽  
Drug Use ◽  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Hiv Positive ◽  
Sex With Men ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Hiv Negative

Abstract Objective: To understand the relationship between drug use, food insecurity (FI), and mental health among men who have sex with men (MSM). Design: Cohort study (2014-2019) with at least one follow-up. Setting: Visits at 6-month intervals included self-assessment for FI and depressive symptoms. Urine testing results confirmed drug use. Factors associated with FI were assessed using multiple logistic regression with random effects for repeated measures. General structural equation modeling tested whether FI mediates the relationship between drug use and depressive symptoms. Participants: Data were from HIV-positive and high-risk HIV negative MSM in Los Angeles, CA (n=431; 1,192 visits). Results: At baseline, FI was reported by 50.8% of participants, depressive symptoms in 36.7%, and 52.7% of urine screening tests were positive for drugs (i.e., marijuana, opioids, methamphetamine, cocaine, ecstasy). A positive drug test was associated with a 96% increase in the odds of being food insecure (95% CI: 1.26-3.07). Compared to those with high food security, individuals with very low food security have a nearly 7-fold increase in the odds of reporting depressive symptoms (95% CI: 3.71-11.92). Findings showed 14.9% of the association between drug use (exposure) and depressive symptoms (outcome) can be explained by FI (mediator). Conclusion: The prevalence of FI among this cohort of HIV-positive and high-risk HIV-negative MSM was high; the association between drug use and depressive symptoms was partially mediated by FI. Findings suggest that enhancing access to food and nutrition may improve mood in the context of drug use, especially among MSM at risk for HIV-transmission.

scholarly journals Eating and body image: Does food insecurity make us feel thinner?

2017 ◽  
Vol 40 ◽  
Author(s):  
Klaudia B. Ambroziak ◽  
Elena Azañón ◽  
Matthew R. Longo
Keyword(s):  
Eating Disorders ◽  
Body Image ◽  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Eating Behavior ◽  
Healthy Individuals ◽  
Insurance Hypothesis ◽  
Central Aspect ◽  
Food Scarcity ◽  
Clinical Conditions ◽  
The Relationship

AbstractBody image distortions are common in healthy individuals and a central aspect of serious clinical conditions, such as eating disorders. This commentary explores the potential implications of body image and its distortions for the insurance hypothesis. In particular, we speculate that body image may be an intervening variable mediating the relationship between perceived food scarcity and eating behavior.

Examining the Relationship Between Food Insecurity and Academic Performance: Implications for Diversity and Equity in Higher Education

2021 ◽  
pp. 152102512110538
Author(s):  
Heather Mechler ◽  
Kathryn Coakley ◽  
Marygold Walsh-Dilley ◽  
Sarita Cargas
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
United States ◽  
Food Insecurity ◽  
Educational Equity ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Drop Out ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Professional Students ◽  
The Relationship

In recent years, researchers have increasingly focused on the experience of food insecurity among students at higher education institutions. Most of the literature has focused on undergraduates in the eastern and midwestern regions of the United States. This cross-sectional study of undergraduate, graduate, and professional students at a Minority Institution in the southwestern United States is the first of its kind to explore food insecurity among diverse students that also includes data on gender identity and sexual orientation. When holding other factors constant, food-insecure students were far more likely to fail or withdraw from a course or to drop out entirely. We explore the role that higher education can play in ensuring students’ basic needs and implications for educational equity.

scholarly journals On the mental toughness of self-aware athletes: Evidence from competitive tennis players

2017 ◽  
Vol Volume 113 (Number 1/2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Richard G. Cowden ◽  
◽  
Keyword(s):  
South African ◽  
Multivariate Regression ◽  
Research Evidence ◽  
The Self ◽  
Mental Toughness ◽  
Self Awareness ◽  
Regression Analyses ◽  
Tennis Players ◽  
Self Reflection ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract This study examined the relationship between mental toughness (MT) and self-awareness in a sample of 175 male and 158 female South African tennis athletes (mean age = 29.09 years, s.d. = 14.00). The participants completed the Sport Mental Toughness Questionnaire and the Self-Reflection and Insight Scale to assess MT (confidence, constancy, control) and self-awareness (self-reflection and self-insight) dimensions, respectively. Linear regression indicated that self-insight (β=0.49), but not self-reflection (β=0.02), predicted global MT. Multivariate regression analyses were significant for self-reflection (ηp²=0.11) and self-insight (ηp²=0.24). Self-reflection predicted confidence and constancy (ηp²=0.05 and 0.06, respectively), whereas self-insight predicted all three MT subcomponents (ηp²=0.12 to 0.14). The findings extend prior qualitative research evidence supporting the relevance of self-awareness to the MT of competitive tennis athletes, with self-reflection and insight forming prospective routes through which athletes’ MT may be developed.

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