The Relationship Between Food Insecurity and BMI for Preschool Children
Katherine E Speirs1,2, Barbara H Fiese3,4,
1Family Resiliency Center, Department of Human Development and Family Studies, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 904 West Nevada Street, MC-081, Urbana, IL, USA. kspeirs@illinois.edu.
Insights
Food insecurity in preschool-aged children is linked to higher rates of overweight, particularly in girls. Early intervention programs should address both food insecurity and obesity simultaneously to ensure access to nutritious foods.
Area of Science:
- Pediatric Nutrition
- Public Health Research
Background:
- Inconclusive literature exists on the link between food insecurity and obesity in preschool-aged children.
- Existing studies suffer from inconsistent measurement of food insecurity and overweight.
- This study investigates concurrent household and child food insecurity and child overweight in 2-5 year olds.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the relationships between household and child food insecurity and child overweight.
- To examine gender differences in these relationships among preschool-aged children.
Main Methods:
- Utilized measured height and weight data from 438 preschool-aged children (mean age 39 months).
- Employed the Household Food Security Survey Module for data collection.
- Logistic regression models were used to analyze the association between food insecurity and child BMI, with separate analyses for boys and girls.
Main Results:
- 27% of children from food-insecure households and 25% of food-insecure children were overweight or obese.
- No statistically significant association was found between food insecurity and BMI in the overall sample.
- Household food insecurity was significantly associated with BMI z-scores in girls (β = 0.23, p = 0.01) but not in boys.
Conclusions:
- While overall associations were not significant, a substantial proportion of food-insecure children were overweight.
- Findings suggest a potential gender-specific relationship between household food insecurity and overweight in young children.
- Intervention programs for young children should concurrently address food insecurity and obesity, prioritizing access to nutrient-dense foods.
Objectives:
The literature exploring the relationship between food insecurity and obesity for preschool-aged children is inconclusive and suffers from inconsistent measurement. This paper explores the relationships between concurrent household and child food insecurity and child overweight as well as differences in these relationships by child gender using a sample of 2-5 year old children.
Methods:
Using measured height and weight and responses to the Household Food Security Survey Module collected from a sample of 438 preschool-aged children (mean age 39 months) and their mothers, logistic regression models were fit to estimate the relationship between household and child food insecurity and child BMI. Separate models were fit for girls and boys.
Results:
Twenty-seven percent of children from food insecure households and 25 % of child food insecure children were overweight or obese (BMI ≥ 85 %). There were no statistically significant associations between either household or child food insecurity and BMI for the full sample. For girls, but not boys, household food insecurity was associated with BMI z-scores (β = 0.23, p = 0.01).
Conclusions:
Although food insecurity and overweight were not significantly associated, a noteworthy proportion of food insecure children were overweight or obese. Programs for young children should address food insecurity and obesity simultaneously by ensuring that young children have regular access to nutrient-dense foods.
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