Food Insecurity and Mental Distress Among WIC-Eligible Women in the United States: A Cross-Sectional Study

Herman, Dena R.; Westfall, Miranda; Bashir, Muna; Afulani, Patience

doi:10.1016/j.jand.2023.09.006

Cited by 5 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 42 publications

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“…Both the Child-Only FI and Adult-Only FI groups reported lower global mental health, higher perceived stress and lower life satisfaction compared to the reference group. This is consistent with existing studies, suggesting that living in a household experiencing food insecurity is associated with worse mental health outcomes than living in a household with food security [3,5,12,13,15,21,22,39]. Additionally, both the Child-Only FI and Adult-Only FI groups reported using significantly more behavioral food coping strategies and having worse physical health than mothers in the reference group.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

“…Although there is limited research on the directionality of this relationship, existing evidence suggests this link is bidirectional [15,19]. For mothers in particular, the experience of food insecurity has been associated with increased perceived stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms, and risk of having a diagnosed mental illness [13,15,20,21]. Increasing severity of food insecurity is associated with worsening mental health outcomes [13,21,22], and using food coping strategies (e.g., reduced quality or quantity of food, reduced other expenses) is a mediator of this relationship [12].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…For mothers in particular, the experience of food insecurity has been associated with increased perceived stress, anxiety and depressive symptoms, and risk of having a diagnosed mental illness [13,15,20,21]. Increasing severity of food insecurity is associated with worsening mental health outcomes [13,21,22], and using food coping strategies (e.g., reduced quality or quantity of food, reduced other expenses) is a mediator of this relationship [12]. Mothers have reported that relying on food coping strategies can contribute to parental guilt, poor mental health and reduced mental bandwidth [23].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Differing Within-Household Food Security Statuses Are Associated with Varied Maternal Mental Health Outcomes

Liebe,

Holmes,

Misyak

2024

Nutrients

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Household food insecurity is not necessarily equally experienced by all household members, with mothers often changing their intake first when food resources are limited. The purpose of this study was to understand the association between maternal mental health and intrahousehold differences in food security statuses. A cross-sectional survey was administered to Virginia mothers with low income (August–October 2021), assessing validated measures of food security, mental and physical health and related factors. Participants (n = 570) were grouped according to the food security status of adults and children within the household. Linear regression was used to assess the outcomes of interest by group and controlled for key demographic variables. Mothers in households with any food insecurity reported worse overall mental health and used 3–4 more food coping strategies than households experiencing food security (p < 0.05). Only mothers in households where adults experienced food insecurity reported significantly greater anxiety and depressive symptoms (61.5 and 58.1, respectively) compared to households experiencing food security (55.7 and 52.4, p < 0.001). While any experience of household food insecurity is associated with worse maternal mental health, there were differences by the within-household food security status. Future research should explore screening measures that capture specific household members’ food security to connect households with available resources.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 90%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Differing Within-Household Food Security Statuses Are Associated with Varied Maternal Mental Health Outcomes

Liebe,

Holmes,

Misyak

2024

Nutrients

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“…1 WIC is an extension of healthcare to address the specific needs of prenatal and postnatal women and infant and child development. 11 The program's goal is to improve and decrease racial disparities in maternal and child health outcomes by reducing premature births, low birth weights, and infant mortality, which is high among women of color. 12 Since WIC's creation in 1974, it has increased the allotments of cash benefits for fruit and vegetables, an essential component in the nutrition and positive health outcomes of the pregnant mother and child.…”

Section: Impact Of Special Supplemental Nutrition Program For Women I...mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…41 Barriers to breastfeeding for BIPOC women include budget cuts in hospitals that have eliminated programs that support breastfeeding, language barriers in mothers' communication with healthcare providers, and mothers having low-wage positions where they cannot take extended maternity leave or have flexible schedules for lactation accommodation. 42,43 In addition, a national representative study 11 found that stressors associated with life changes in pregnancy and caring for infants and lack of support in the workplace for breastfeeding or housing insecurity are other barriers to breastfeeding contributing to health inequities. Programs such as WIC were created to assist with facilitating the reduction of these barriers to decrease infant and maternal mortality.…”

Section: Barriers For Breastfeeding In Bipoc Individualsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Navigating Nutrition Inequities

Scott,

Qamar

2024

Journal of Perinatal &Amp; Neonatal Nursing

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Introduction: The proposal to administer cuts for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) could create deficiencies in nutrition for already food insecure, low-income Black, Indigenous, and Persons of Color (BIPOC) pregnant, postpartum women, and children. WIC is a US Department of Agriculturefunded nutritional program for women, infants, and children. The current proposal is to cut the funding by $800 million for the 2024 fiscal year, affecting 75% of its low-income recipients and predominantly BIPOC. Methods: Relevant websites and journal articles were analyzed to determine how the proposed cuts would create barriers within the social determinants of health that contribute to disparities in health outcomes of WIC recipients. Results: Many studies have demonstrated that nutrition in the first 1000 days is critical for the healthy development of newborns. Prior research suggests that maternal health outcomes for BIPOC populations are contingent upon the increased allocation of nutritional support programs such as WIC and SNAP (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program). Nutrients provided by the cash benefit voucher have been proven to contribute to participants' health outcomes, and allotment increases can benefit maternal and infant health outcomes. Conclusion and future directions: Neonatal nurses can help advocate for more robust policies that support the health of their patients. Future directions call for systematic changes in policies and legislation that directly affect maternal health outcomes, supportive breastfeeding policies, and applied research on solutions to improve maternal health outcomes of BIPOC populations in addition to increased awareness, education, and implementation of VeggieRx programs, investment in affordable, sustainable grassroots urban agriculture solutions.

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Food Insecurity and Community-Based Food Resources Among Caregivers of Hospitalized Children

Asay,

Abramsohn,

Winslow

et al. 2024

Hospital Pediatrics

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OBJECTIVE Children’s hospitals are implementing interventions to connect families to community-based resources. This study describes food insecurity (FI) and food resource knowledge, need, and use among families with a hospitalized child. METHODS Between November 2020 and June 2022, 637 caregivers of hospitalized children in an urban 42-ZIP-code area were surveyed as part of a randomized controlled trial. The United States Department of Agriculture 18-item Household Food Security Survey was used to evaluate 12-month food security (food secure [score of 0=FS]; marginally secure [1–2=MFS]; insecure [3–18=FI]). Food resource knowledge, need, and use were described by food security status and examined using Cochran-Armitage tests. The distribution of local resources was obtained from a database and mapped by ZIP code. RESULTS Comparing FI (35.0%) with MFS (17.6%) and FS (47.4%) groups, the rates of resource knowledge were lower (70.2% vs 78.5%, 80.5%), and the rates of need (55.1% vs 30.6%, 14.2%) and use (55.3% vs 51.4%, 40.8%) were higher. Rates of food resource knowledge increased linearly with increasing food security (FI to MFS to FS; P = .008), whereas the rates of resource need (P < .001) and use (P = .001) decreased with increasing food security. There were 311 community-based organizations across 36 ZIP codes with participants (range/ZIP code = 0–20, median = 8). CONCLUSIONS Half of families with a hospitalized child experienced FI or MFS. Although families exhibited high food resource knowledge, nearly half of families with FI had unmet food needs or had never used resources.

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Food Insecurity and Mental Distress Among WIC-Eligible Women in the United States: A Cross-Sectional Study

Cited by 5 publications

References 42 publications

Differing Within-Household Food Security Statuses Are Associated with Varied Maternal Mental Health Outcomes

Differing Within-Household Food Security Statuses Are Associated with Varied Maternal Mental Health Outcomes

Navigating Nutrition Inequities

Food Insecurity and Community-Based Food Resources Among Caregivers of Hospitalized Children

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