scholarly journals Soup kitchen users' social representations of healthy eating associated with their household food security status

2016 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 229-240
Author(s):  
Isabel Cristina BENTO ◽  
Fernanda Martins SOBRINHO ◽  
Mery Natali Silva ABREU ◽  
Maria Flávia GAZZINELLI ◽  
Simone Cardoso Lisboa PEREIRA

Objective: To verify whether what users of soup kitchens in Belo Horizonte, Minas Gerais, Brazil, think about a healthy diet and the challenges they face to eat healthy are associated with their household food security status. Methods: This cross-sectional study included 1,656 users of soup kitchens in Belo Horizonte. Socioeconomic and household food security data, and healthy-eating discourses were collected by a semi-structured questionnaire. The data were submitted to descriptive analyses for constructing frequency distribution tables, and to univariate analysis. Discourse analysis was based on the social representation theory. Results: To cut, reduce, avoid, not eat, eat less, and decrease carbohydrates, salt, meats, various beverages, and other foods are the most frequent changes (71.4%) that food-secure users have made or intend to make. Food-insecure users intended to eat more fruits, non-starchy vegetables, and other foods (34.4%). The main obstacles food-secure and food-insecure users face to adopt a healthier diet are lack of time (82.9%) and low income (53.5%), respectively (p<0.001). Conclusion: What users of soup kitchens in Belo Horizonte think about food and the obstacles they face to adopt a healthier diet are related to their household food security status. The results provide valuable data for effective proposals of food and nutrition education, which should act on the producers of subjectivity in this group and consider this group's food and nutrition security status.

2016 ◽  
Vol 116 (11) ◽  
pp. 1760-1766 ◽  
Author(s):  
Elizabeth Metallinos-Katsaras ◽  
Rachel Colchamiro ◽  
Sari Edelstein ◽  
Elizabeth Siu

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sally G. Eagleton ◽  
Jennifer L. Temple ◽  
Kathleen L. Keller ◽  
Michele E. Marini ◽  
Jennifer S. Savage

The relative reinforcing value (RRV) of food measures how hard someone will work for a high-energy-dense (HED) food when an alternative reward is concurrently available. Higher RRV for HED food has been linked to obesity, yet this association has not been examined in low-income preschool-age children. Further, the development of individual differences in the RRV of food in early childhood is poorly understood. This cross-sectional study tested the hypothesis that the RRV of HED (cookies) to low-energy-dense (LED; fruit) food would be greater in children with obesity compared to children without obesity in a sample of 130 low-income 3- to 5-year-olds enrolled in Head Start classrooms in Central Pennsylvania. In addition, we examined individual differences in the RRV of food by child characteristics (i.e., age, sex, and reward sensitivity) and food security status. The RRV of food was measured on concurrent progressive-ratio schedules of reinforcement. RRV outcomes included the last schedule reached (breakpoint) for cookies (cookie Pmax) and fruit (fruit Pmax), the breakpoint for cookies in proportion to the total breakpoint for cookies and fruit combined (RRV cookie), and response rates (responses per minute). Parents completed the 18-item food security module to assess household food security status and the Behavioral Activation System scale to assess reward sensitivity. Pearson’s correlations and mixed models assessed associations between continuous and discrete child characteristics with RRV outcomes, respectively. Two-way mixed effects interaction models examined age and sex as moderators of the association between RRV and Body Mass Index z-scores (BMIZ). Statistical significance was defined as p &lt; 0.05. Children with obesity (17%) had a greater cookie Pmax [F (1, 121) = 4.95, p = 0.03], higher RRV cookie [F (1, 121) = 4.28, p = 0.04], and responded at a faster rate for cookies [F (1, 121) = 17.27, p &lt; 0.001] compared to children without obesity. Children with higher cookie response rates had higher BMIZ (r = 0.26, p &lt; 0.01); and RRV cookie was positively associated with BMIZ for older children (5-year-olds: t = 2.40, p = 0.02) and boys (t = 2.55, p = 0.01), but not younger children or girls. The RRV of food did not differ by household food security status. Low-income children with obesity showed greater motivation to work for cookies than fruit compared to their peers without obesity. The RRV of HED food may be an important contributor to increased weight status in boys and future research is needed to better understand developmental trajectories of the RRV of food across childhood.


2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (Supplement_2) ◽  
pp. 204-204
Author(s):  
Laura Hopkins ◽  
Cara Pannell ◽  
Carolyn Gunther

Abstract Objectives Explore the relationship between attendance at USDA Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) sites and baseline household food security status. Methods Two elementary schools in low-income urban neighborhoods of Columbus, OH were recruited. Families with children at these schools in grades pre-kindergarten through fifth were invited to participate. Caregivers completed a demographic survey at the end of school year 1 (baseline [t0]). Household food security was assessed at t0 using the USDA 6-item Short Form Food Security Module and based on responses participants were categorized as living in high marginal food security (HMFS), low food security (LFS), or very low food security (VLFS) households. Child attendance at USDA SFSP sites was collected via weekly text messages to caregivers using the online TextIt© platform. ANOVA was conducted to determine differences in attendance level by household food security status. Results 113 children representing 78 families enrolled. Mean age was 7.10 ± 0.21 yr, 79.65% were African American, 72.73% were low-income, and mean annual income was $28,222. Approximately 27% of families (n = 21) reported living in LFS (n = 10, 14.82%) or VLFS (n = 11, 12.10%) households. Overall mean attendance at summer programming was 10.40 ± 1.43 days (out of 50 possible days) and attendance by household food security status was 10.51 ± 1.61 (HMFS), 19.00 ± 6.15 (LFS), and 5.70 ± 2.85 (VLFS) days with a significant difference (P = 0.04) between LFS and VLFS households. Conclusions Children in VLFS (vs HMFS and LFS) households, who are at increased risk for hunger during the summertime window of risk, are attending sites offering the USDA SFSP least frequently. Future research and programmatic efforts should be targeted at children from the most vulnerable households to ensure food security during the summertime window of risk. Funding Sources USDA NC-NECE.


2018 ◽  
Vol 79 (3) ◽  
pp. 125-128 ◽  
Author(s):  
Erica Reynolds ◽  
Christine Johnson ◽  
Jennifer A. Jamieson ◽  
Hannah Mawhinney

Purpose: University students may be at risk for food insecurity (FI) due to low income coupled with rising tuition, housing, and food costs. This study aimed to determine the prevalence of FI and potential correlates among students at a small, rural Canadian university. Methods: Health Canada’s 10-item household food security survey module (HFSSM) was adapted to assess food security status within the postsecondary student population. An additional 11 items measured food access and demographics. The validated, web-based survey was distributed by email and completed by 218 students (15.6% response rate). Participants were classified as food secure, moderately food insecure, or severely food insecure using the HFSSM Adult scale. Results: An overall FI rate of 37.2% was observed. This included 25.7% moderately food insecure and 11.5% severely food insecure. Students in higher years of study and who lived off campus had higher rates of FI. Conclusions: FI appears to be a significant concern for university students and has potential health and academic implications. Further research is needed to clarify the determinants and extent of FI for postsecondary students and to develop strategies to mitigate the prevalence and effects of food insecurity in these young adults.


2021 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 565-581
Author(s):  
Wilson Chukwukasi Kassy ◽  
Anne C Ndu ◽  
Chinyere Cecilia Okeke ◽  
Elisa Chwike Aniwada

2008 ◽  
Vol 21 (suppl) ◽  
pp. 27s-37s ◽  
Author(s):  
Hugo Melgar-Quinonez ◽  
Michelle Hackett

Measuring household food insecurity represents a challenge due to the complexity and wide array of factors associated with this phenomenon. For over one decade, researchers and agencies throughout the world have been using and assessing the validity of variations of the United States Department of Agriculture Household Food Security Supplemental Module. Thanks to numerous studies of diverse design, size, and purpose, the Household Food Security Supplemental Module has shown its suitability to directly evaluate the perceptions of individuals on their food security status. In addition, challenges and limitations are becoming clearer and new research questions are emerging as the process advances. The purpose of this article is to describe the development, validation procedures, and use of the Household Food Security Supplemental Module in very diverse settings. The most common Household Food Security Supplemental Module related studies have been conducted using criterion validity, Rasch modeling and Cronbach-Alpha Coefficient. It is critical that researchers, policy makers, governmental and non-governmental agencies intensify their efforts to further develop tools that provide valid and reliable measures of food security in diverse population groups. Additional work is needed to synthesize a universally applicable tool able to capture the global human phenomenon of food insecurity.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 3307 ◽  
Author(s):  
Primrose Ngema ◽  
Melusi Sibanda ◽  
Lovemore Musemwa

Food security at the household level remains a major issue in South Africa and for many other developing countries, particularly those in Africa. As a means of ensuring food security in KwaZulu-Natal province, various food security intervention programmes were launched. Nonetheless, food security remains an issue among households in the province. This paper estimates the household food security status of the “One Home One Garden” (OHOG) beneficiaries against that of non-beneficiaries and assesses the determinants of household food security status in Maphumulo. A stratified random sampling technique was used to sample 495 households (including 330 OHOG beneficiaries and 165 non-beneficiaries). The status of household food security was estimated by means of a “Household Dietary Diversity Score” (HDDS). Additionally, a Household Food Consumption Score” (HFCS) tool was employed to supplement the HDDS. The results showed that food consumption patterns were characterized by medium (4.89) and average (4.22) HDDS for the OHOG beneficiaries and non-beneficiaries, respectively. Taking HDDS as a proxy for household food security, an independent samples t-test (Levene’s test—equal variances assumed) reveals a significant (p < 0.001) relationship between the sample means of the two groups. A greater proportion (65%) of the OHOG beneficiaries had an acceptable (≥35) HFCS level, whereas just over half (54%) of the non-beneficiaries fell in the borderline (21.5 to 35) HFCS level. The determinants of household food security status were elicited by means of a binary logistic regression model. The results revealed that education (p = 0.036), receiving infrastructural support (irrigation) (p = 0.001), and participation in the OHOG programme (p = 0.000) positively influenced the food security status of households, yet household income (p = 0.000) and access to credit (p = 0.002) showed a negative correlation. This paper proposes that government and developmental agencies, in their efforts to enhance food security through food security intervention programmes, should support households by investing in education and agricultural infrastructure, as well as giving priority to smallholder infrastructural irrigation support for households that largely rely on rain-fed systems.


2019 ◽  
Vol 11 (9) ◽  
pp. 2715 ◽  
Author(s):  
William Nkomoki ◽  
Miroslava Bavorová ◽  
Jan Banout

Food security is a global challenge and threatens mainly smallholder farmers in developing countries. The main aim of this paper is to determine factors that are associated with food security in Zambia. This study utilizes the household questionnaire survey dataset of 400 smallholder farmers in four districts conducted in southern Zambia in 2016. To measure food security, the study employs two food security indicators, namely the food consumption score (FCS) and the household hunger scale (HHS). Two ordered probit models are estimated with the dependent variables FCS and HHS. Both the FCS and HHS models’ findings reveal that higher education levels of household head, increasing livestock income, secure land tenure, increasing land size, and group membership increase the probability of household food and nutrition security. The results imply that policies supporting livestock development programs such as training of farmers in animal husbandry, as well as policies increasing land tenure security and empowerment of farmers groups, have the potential to enhance household food and nutrition security.


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