Relationship between social indicators and food insecurity: a systematic review

Abstract

Introduction: The relationships between the social indicators (SIs) that determine food insecurity (FI) have not been described yet. This systematic review aims to identify which SIs are associated with FI in Brazilian households and how these relationships are explained. Methods: The research protocol was registered on the International Prospective Register of Systematic Reviews (PROSPERO - CRD42018106527). Three independent researchers performed the search in the Latin American and Caribbean Health Sciences Literature (LILACS) and National Library of Medicine (PubMed) databases (June/2018). The study included articles that used the Brazilian Household Food Insecurity Measurement Scale (Escala Brasileira de Insegurança Alimentar - EBIA) to assess FI and that evaluated the association between SIs and FI. Results: We included 18 articles in this review. The Kappa concordance index between the researchers was 0.72 (95%CI 0.42 - 1.00). Most articles were cross-sectional and used multivariate regression for the statistical analysis. At least one income-related SI had a significant association with FI, and, in most studies, they presented the highest values of association measures. We organized the authors’ explanation about the relationships between SIs and FI in a conceptual model. The study identified three possible justifications for the association between SIs and FI: direct relationship, relationship mediated by income, or relationship mediated by another SI and income. Conclusion: Income assumed a central role in the mediation between several SIs and FI. However, the analysis methods of the studies did not allow us to investigate this mediation. Therefore, improving data analysis to isolate and understand the effect of SIs on FI is still necessary.

Governmental programmes associated with food insecurity among communities of descendants of enslaved blacks in Brazil

“…Families that accessed Bolsa Família were almost three times more likely to experience moderate/severe FI. In fact, the relationship between extreme poverty is strongly associated with severe levels of FI, as demonstrated by the literature (53) . However, the household FI is not considered as an eligibility criterion for receiving the cash transfer in Brazil.…”

National Trends and Disparities in Severe Food Insecurity in Brazil between 2004 and 2018

“…The sociodemographic characteristics associated with FI were similar between the 2 periods of variation considered in this study (2004–2013 and 2013–2018) ( 15 ). Severe FI was consistently higher in households with a higher density of residents, with low income, or whose household person of reference was female and declared herself to be black/mixed race people ( 40 ). Households with ≥1 of these characteristics experienced a strong reduction in severe FI between 2004 and 2013, followed by an increase between 2013 and 2018, with the returning of the strong inequities previously documented ( 41 ).…”

Social inequalities and household food insecurity in quilombola communities in Brazil

“…Household income is pivotal in enabling access to adequate food and reducing FI, since it mediates the relationship between social and economic indicators and FI [24]. The association between food security and income is well documented in the literature [25,26].…”