Food insecurity predicts well-being inequality.
Michael D Smith1, Dennis Wesselbaum2
1NOAA, National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Economics and Social Sciences Research, Alaska Fisheries Science Center, 7600 Sand Point Way NE, Seattle, WA 98115-6349, USA.
Preventive Medicine
|January 1, 2023
Summary
Food insecurity increases well-being inequality in middle- and high-income nations. Severe food insecurity impacts well-being distribution across all income levels, offering crucial policy insights for Sustainable Development Goals.
Area of Science:
- Social Sciences
- Economics
- Public Health
Background:
- Well-being offers an alternative framework to income and consumption for understanding inequality and poverty.
- Recent research highlights the significance of examining well-being inequality.
- Food insecurity is a known driver of average well-being levels.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the relationship between food insecurity and well-being inequality.
- To determine if food insecurity predicts changes in the distribution of well-being.
- To provide policy-relevant insights for achieving Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) 2 and 3.
Main Methods:
- Utilized individual-level data from the Gallup World Poll (2014-2017, N=446,741) across 135 countries.
- Applied a flexible moments-based approach to analyze the data.
- Employed estimated conditional variance as a measure of inter-personal inequality in subjective well-being.
Main Results:
- Higher food insecurity is associated with increased well-being inequality in middle- and high-income countries.
- This association was not observed in low-income countries.
- Severe food insecurity correlates with well-being inequality across all income groups.
Conclusions:
- Food insecurity significantly influences well-being inequality, particularly in higher-income nations.
- Understanding well-being disparities provides insights beyond average values, crucial for policy interventions.
- Findings support efforts towards achieving SDG 2 (Zero Hunger) and SDG 3 (Good Health and Well-being).
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