An explorative cross-sectional study examining self-reported health and nutritional status of disadvantaged people using food banks in Germany

Depa, Julia; Hilzendegen, Carolin; Tinnemann, Peter; Stroebele‐Benschop, Nanette

doi:10.1186/s12939-015-0276-6

Cited by 31 publications

(29 citation statements)

References 22 publications

(40 reference statements)

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“…Food bank users in Germany can be described as a group of economically disadvantaged people with low- or no income, unemployment or low paid job, and a reliance on welfare assistance ( Depa et al, 2015 ; Tinnemann et al, 2012 ). Adult food bank users were recruited at food banks in three different cities in Germany (Stuttgart, Berlin, Karlsruhe).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Prevalence of food insecurity among food bank users in Germany and its association with population characteristics

Depa

Gyngell

Müller

et al. 2018

Preventive Medicine Reports

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The prevalence of food insecurity (FI) among food bank users in many European countries is unknown. The study aims to examine FI prevalence and associated population characteristics among this particular group of disadvantaged people in Germany. Food insecurity status was assessed among 1033 adult food bank users with a mean age of 53 years (57% female, 43% male) in Germany in 2015 using the food insecurity experience scale (FIES). About half of the participants (55.8%) were single with no children and born in Germany. Over 37% had a self-reported BMI of 30 kg/m2 or above and 37.4% indicated to smoke.Over 70% of the food bank users can be described as food insecure. Of those, about 35% were considered mildly food insecure. Almost 30% were categorized as moderately food insecure while over 7% were categorized as severely food insecure. Significant associations with food insecurity were found for gender, age, subjective health status, smoking, duration of food bank use, school education and family type. Among this socially disadvantaged population, food insecurity is highly prevalent and public health efforts should be focusing on this vulnerable population taken into account the identified population and behavioral characteristics associated with food insecurity.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Height and weight were self-reported. The questionnaire has also been used in previous research studies among food bank users ( Depa et al, 2015 ; Tinnemann et al, 2012 ).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Prevalence of food insecurity among food bank users in Germany and its association with population characteristics

Depa

Gyngell

Müller

et al. 2018

Preventive Medicine Reports

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“…Over the last decades, food banks have become a critical food source for people with lowincome in many high-income countries including the USA [ 1 ], Canada [ 2 ], Australia [ 3 ], and in several European countries [ 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]. Although operation and organization of food banks differ widely between and even within countries, food banks are generally operated by charitable organizations that collect, store, and distribute food donated by retailers, the food industry, and farmers to needy people or to other charitable organizations [ 8 ].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The German Food Bank System and Its Users—A Cross-Sectional Study

Simmet

Tinnemann

Stroebele‐Benschop

2018

IJERPH

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Although food banks are a well-known resource for low-income people struggling to meet their food needs, they have rarely been investigated on a large scale. This study aims to contribute to the actual debate about the potential and limitations of food banks to decrease the prevalence of food insecurity by providing a representative picture of the German food bank system and its users. Publicly accessible data were used to map residents, public welfare recipients, and food banks. In addition, a comprehensive survey was distributed to all 934 “Tafel” food banks. The results show that nearly all residents and welfare recipients have access to at least one food bank located in the districts in which they reside. Differences in the density of food banks exist between eastern and western Germany. Food banks provide mainly healthy fresh food, but they heavily rely on food donations from local retailers and on volunteer labor. Although changes in the number of user households by income seem to mirror trends in the number of welfare recipients, food bank users appear to represent only a fraction of the food-insecure population in Germany. Food banks might have the potential to improve users’ diet and food security, but they are not able to reach all food-insecure residents in Germany.

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“…Studies on the nutritional intake of food-assistance program users show a lower consumption of fruit, vegetables, dairy products, or seafood compared with the guidelines [6, 7], the general population [10], or the low-socioeconomic status (SES) population [7, 11]. Furthermore, for vitamins A [12, 13], C, and E, and folate [12], fiber [6, 7, 12], calcium, and zinc [13], inadequate intakes have been reported.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Three studies assessing the nutritional intake of adult food-assistance program users were conducted in the USA [6, 7, 12], two in Canada [10, 13], and two in Europe: France [10] and Germany [11]. Dutch data are not available yet.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Dutch food bank recipients have poorer dietary intakes than the general and low-socioeconomic status Dutch adult population

et al. 2017

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PurposeFood-assistance program users are a specific group of nutritional concern, as they are often food insufficient and have poorer diet quality compared to non-food-assistance program users. The aim of our study was to assess dietary intake of Dutch food bank recipients (n = 167) and to compare this with dietary intake of a representative sample of the general population (Dutch National Food Consumption Survey (DNFCS-all): n = 1933), including a low-socioeconomic status (SES) sample (DNFCS-low SES: n = 312), using data from the DNFCS 2007–2010.MethodsIn this cross-sectional study, 12 food banks throughout The Netherlands participated. Food bank recipients’ characteristics were assessed with a self-administered questionnaire. Dietary intake data were collected through three 24-h recalls. Habitual dietary intake (mean, percentiles, and 95% CI) was estimated for all samples. Differences between samples were determined by comparing the 95% CIs.ResultsMean age of the study population (62.9% female) was 48.6 years (SD:10.1). Mean energy intake was 1986 (95% CI 1830–2089) kcal. The majority of the Dutch food bank recipients had lower intakes than dietary reference intakes for dietary fiber, fruit, vegetables, and fish (range 86.6–99.3%), and a higher intake for saturated fat [88.1% (95% CI 84.1–98.9)]. Furthermore, mean intakes of energy, fiber, fruit, and vegetables were significantly lower in Dutch food bank recipients than in the DNFCS-all and the DNFCS-low-SES [e.g., daily mean fruit intake (g) food bank recipients 62.8 (95% CI 45.5–76.5), DNFCS-all 105.8 (95% CI 105.4–117.9), and DNFCS-low-SES 85.1 (95% CI 78.7–100.2)]. Fish intake was significantly lower compared with the DNFCS-all, but not compared with the DNFCS-low-SES.ConclusionsDutch food bank recipients, who largely rely on the content of food parcels, are not able to meet the nutritional guidelines for a healthy diet, and their dietary intake is poorer than the general as well as the low-SES sample of the Dutch adult population. More research is needed on how to improve the dietary intake of this vulnerable population subgroup, by, e.g., revising the content of the food parcels, and to develop effective intervention activities.

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An explorative cross-sectional study examining self-reported health and nutritional status of disadvantaged people using food banks in Germany

Cited by 31 publications

References 22 publications

Prevalence of food insecurity among food bank users in Germany and its association with population characteristics

Prevalence of food insecurity among food bank users in Germany and its association with population characteristics

The German Food Bank System and Its Users—A Cross-Sectional Study

Dutch food bank recipients have poorer dietary intakes than the general and low-socioeconomic status Dutch adult population

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