Food insecurity is an important risk factor for type 2 diabetes: a case-control study of new referrals to the University clinics, Shiraz, Southern Iran

Abstract

Background The prevalence of food insecurity (FI) as “the limited or uncertain availability of enough food for an always active and healthy life” and diabetes as “the most common metabolic disease” are rising in Iran. The aim was to assess the FI, depression, and socioeconomic status as risk factors for type 2 diabetes (T2D). Methods This case-control study was conducted on 135 patients with T2D as cases (99 females, 36 males, mean age 46.83 years) and 135 subjects without diabetes (89 females, 46 males, mean age 45.93 years) as controls. They had been referred to clinics of Shiraz University of Medical Sciences, Shiraz, Iran. The prior major inclusion criterion for diabetes was fasting blood sugar (FBS) ≥126 mg/dl. General, demographic, and socioeconomic characteristics and FI status were assessed using the general and 18-items United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) household food security questionnaires, respectively. Chi-square, t-test, and uni-and multi-variate logistic regression tests and SPSS 16 statistical software were used. Results The prevalence of FI was 66.7% in cases and 41.5% in controls. According to final analysis model, FI (Odds Ratio [OR] = 1.9, P = 0.016), depression (OR = 2.0, P = 0.018), body mass index (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m 2 (OR = 1.8, P = 0.025), number of children ≥4 (OR = 1.7, P = 0.046), and having children under 18 years. (OR = 2.1, P = 0.011) were significant independent risk factors for T2D. Conclusion The prevalence of FI in patients with T2D was significantly higher compared to the controls. FI was an important risk factor for T2D, even after controlling for the potential confounders. Further studies are suggested.

Perceived risk, behavior changes and Health-related outcomes during COVID-19 pandemic: Findings among adults with and without diabetes in China

“…Literature has shown that food insecurity is an important risk factor for type 2 diabetes. [28] People with diabetes are more dependent on the regularity of food and medicine and therefore this may have caused the perceived risk of food and drug shortage. Concurrently, a higher proportion of individuals with diabetes reported an increase in smoking and drinking than those without diabetes in our sample.…”

A Population-based Cross-sectional Study of Food Insecurity and the Influential Factors in Households in Kermanshah,Iran

“…Another research demonstrated that the prevalence of food insecurity in the villagers of Nishabur (Iran) was 40.9%, which was significantly correlated with the education level and age of the household head, as well as the possession of a home and car, presence of chronic diseases in a family member, presence of a smoker in the family, distance from cities, and income status [17]. In the aforementioned studies, the methods applied for the assessment of food insecurity prevalence and the influential factors [15][16][17], as well as some other experiments [18][19][20][21][22][23][24][25][26][27][28][29][30], are almost similar to the current research, which also confirms our findings.…”

Food Insecurity and Lipid Profile Abnormalities Are Associated with an Increased Risk of Nonalcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD): A Case–Control Study

“…According to recent meta-analysis, general food insecurity prevalence has been reported by 49% among Iranian households (2). Food insecurity is strongly associated with poorer health outcomes (3,5). Several studies have demonstrated associations between food insecurity and overweight/obesity among children and adults using both self-reported and objective measures of body mass index (BMI) (6,7).…”