Exploring the associations between neighbourhood food environment, household food insecurity and child weight-related outcomes in socio-economically and racially/ethnically diverse families
Year: 2022
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Objective: To examine associations among neighbourhood food environments (NFE), household food insecurity (HFI) and child’s weight-related outcomes in a racially/ethnically diverse sample of US-born and immigrant/refugee families. Design: This cross-sectional, observational study involving individual and geographic-level data used multilevel models to estimate associations between neighbourhood food environment and child outcomes. Interactions between HFI and NFE were employed to determine whether HFI moderated the association between NFE and child outcomes and whether the associations differed for US-bornv. immigrant/refugee groups. Setting: The sample resided in 367 census tracts in the Minneapolis/St. Paul, MN metropolitan area, and the data were collected in 2016–2019. Participants: The sample was from theFamily Mattersstudy of families (n1296) with children from six racial/ethnic and immigrant/refugee groups (African American, Latino, Hmong, Native American, Somali/Ethiopian and White). Results: Living in a neighbourhood with low perceived access to affordable fresh fruits and vegetables was found to be associated with lower food security (P< 0·01), poorer child diet quality (P< 0·01) and reduced availability of a variety of fruits (P< 0·01), vegetables (P< 0·05) and whole grains in the home (P< 0·01). Moreover, residing in a food desert was found to be associated with a higher child BMI percentile if the child’s household was food insecure (P< 0·05). No differences in associations were found for immigrant/refugee groups. Conclusions: Poor NFE were associated with worse weight-related outcomes for children; the association with weight was more pronounced among children with HFI. Interventions aiming to improve child weight-related outcomes should consider both NFE and HFI.
Source: Public Health Nutrition
Authors: Sarthak Agarwal, Angela R Fertig, Amanda C Trofholz, Allan D Tate, Jenna Robinson, Jerica M Berge
Institutions: University of Minnesota, University of Georgia
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,255
Awards: Addressing Unanswered Questions About the Home Environment and Childhood Obesity Disparities, Multi-level predictors of whole-person health across the life course, Examining Pathways Between Food Insecurity and Cardiometabolic Health in Diverse Children and Adolescents, Examining How Psychosocial Stress Gets "Under the Skin" and Leads to Cardiovascular Disease Risk in Diverse Children: A Mixed-Methods Study
OpenAlex ID: W4303968937