Differences in US Adult Dietary Patterns by Food Security Status

Abstract

Dietary patterns and food security is considered in four ways: Healthy Eating Index (HEI), food category consumption patterns, energy/macronutrient contributions of food categories, and sub‐category caloric intake accounting for consumption patterns. 2005–2012 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey data were grouped by What We Eat in America food sub‐categories. Of the 20,363 adults, 14,592 were high (71.7%), 2,125 marginal (10.4%), 2,317 low (11.4%), and 1,329 very low food secure (6.5%). High food secure adults have higher HEI in total and each sub‐measure (including refined grains and empty calories). Consumption frequency in most food categories declines with food insecurity. As food insecurity deepens so more energy and carbohydrates are attributable to nonalcoholic beverages. Evidence of the negative dietary impact of sweetened beverages in particular for food insecure adults is presented. Very few differences in dietary patterns emerge, suggesting broad societal level policy combined with targeted sub‐category and nutrition education initiatives.

Adolescent-Reported Food Insecurity: Correlates of Dietary Intake and School Lunch Behavior

“…Study findings are consistent with current literature suggesting an association between household FI and youth reduced vegetable and fruit intake [ 4 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 ], adolescent reduced intake of diary [ 17 ] here, represented by milk, and increased odds of youth SSB consumption [ 15 ]. Overall, findings linking FI with low-quality diet, including increased consumption of fast food are also congruent with relationships found for food-insecure adults [ 4 , 6 , 8 , 9 ].…”

“…Among adults, there is evidence for an association between FI and low-quality dietary intake, including lower intake of beneficial fruits, vegetables, and dairy [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 8 ], and higher sugar-sweetened beverage (SSB) consumption [ 8 ]. Spees and colleagues note that compared to food-secure households, the sources of food for marginal and very low food-secure families more often include convenience stores and fast food restaurants [ 9 ].…”

Is It What They Eat or How Much They Eat That Matters More in Adults with Food Insecurity in a Wealthy-Country Context?

“…Especially in underprivileged metropolitan areas, excessive supply of high energy-dense foods in households with food insecurity may be attributable to easy access to cheaper, more delicious, and easier to prepare foods than healthy foods [ 44 ]. Therefore, policies and programs for food security are thought to be difficult due to the nature of multifaceted aspects of food insecurity, such as income or educational levels, family composition, social safety net, unemployment, and social isolation [ 46 , 52 , 53 , 54 , 55 , 56 , 57 , 58 ]. Despite global economic growth, problems related to food insecurity are not easily resolved.…”

Dietary habits and physical activity: Results from cluster analysis and market basket analysis

“…Thus, students’ opinions about the quality of food in the school’s cafeteria or vending machines can affect their dietary intake and habits. In fact, a distinguished legacy of research has demonstrated that food insecurity is related to poor quality diet (Leung et al 2014; Robaina and Martin, 2013; Rodríguez et al, 2017; Taylor et al, 2017) and obesity (Ashe and Lapane 2017; Smith et al, 2016; Vedovato et al, 2016). In addition, the combinations of dietary habits and physical activity of students that most frequently occur together has not yet been subject of systematic sociological research.…”