High Prevalence of Food Insecurity and Related Disparities Among US College and University Students From 2015-2019
Julia A Wolfson1, Noura Insolera2, Melissa N Laska3
1Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD; Department of Health Policy and Management, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD.
Objective:
We examined food insecurity prevalence among college students included as part of a large, ongoing, nationally representative survey and examined trends and associations with sociodemographic measures.
Methods:
Data come from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics, a nationally representative longitudinal household panel survey, and include 2,538 college students from 2015-2019. Food security status was assessed using the US Department of Agriculture's 18-item Household Food Security Survey Module.
Results:
From 2015 to 2019, 11% of college students experienced marginal food security, and 15% experienced food insecurity. Food insecurity was 12% in 2015 and 14% in 2017 and 2019. More Black and Hispanic students experienced food insecurity than White students (21% and 26%, vs 9%, respectively; P <0.001), as did first-generation than non-first-generation students (18% vs 10%; P = 0.01).
Conclusions And Implications:
College food insecurity is an urgent public health issue demanding greater response from colleges and universities and state and federal governments.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Cross-Sectional Research
Reliability and Validity
Anorexia Nervosa
Symptoms and Physical Effects
Individuals with anorexia nervosa commonly exhibit extreme...
Surveys
Prevalence and Incidence
Prevalence indicates the proportion of individuals in a population who have a specific disease or health...
Correlations


