The Association of Child and Household Food Insecurity With Childhood Overweight Status

Bibliographic Data

ID23356689
AuthorsPatrick H Casey (Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Arkansas Children's Hospital Research Institute, Little Rock, Arkansas, corresponding author), Pippa M Simpson (Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Arkansas Children's Hospital Research Institute, Little Rock, Arkansas), Pippa Simpson (0000-0003-1458-3748, Arkansas Children's Hospital), Jeffrey M Gossett (0000-0002-0260-0048, Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Arkansas Children's Hospital Research Institute, Little Rock, Arkansas), Margaret L Bogle (Agricultural Research Service), Catherine M Champagne (0000-0001-6127-1072, Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana), Carol Connell (0000-0001-9017-7499, University of Southern Mississippi), David W Harsha (Pennington Biomedical Research Center), David Harsha (Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana), Beverly McCabe‐Sellers (Agricultural Research Service), Beverly McCabe-Sellers (Agricultural Research Service), James M Robbins (0000-0003-2200-1947, Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Arkansas Children's Hospital Research Institute, Little Rock, Arkansas), Janice E Stuff (Baylor College of Medicine), Judith Weber (Department of Pediatrics, College of Medicine, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences and Arkansas Children's Hospital Research Institute, Little Rock, Arkansas)
Year2006
Volume118
Issue5
Pagese1406-e1413
Publication date2006-11-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenuePEDIATRICS (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0031-4005 • E-ISSN: 1098-4275
PublisherAmerican Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1542/peds.2006-0097
PMID17079542
OpenAlexW2110036496
LanguageEN
Citations received90
References cited54

CONTEXT. The prevalence of childhood overweight status is increasing. Some have suggested that childhood overweight is associated with food insecurity, defined as limited or uncertain access to enough nutritious food. OBJECTIVES. The purpose of this work was to assess the association of household and child food insecurity with childhood overweight status. METHODS. The National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey 1999–2002 uses a stratified multistaged probability sample and collects a broad array of data from a nationally representative sample of US citizens. All children 3 to 17 years old in this sample are included in these analyses. We measured BMI categorized as at risk for overweight or greater (≥85%) or overweight (≥95%) and household and child food security/insecurity using the US Food Security Scale. RESULTS. When compared with children from food-secure households, children from food-insecure households were more likely to demonstrate significant associations with being at risk for overweight or greater in the following demographic categories: 12 to 17 years, girls, white, and in households with income 4 times the federal poverty level. Household food insecurity is associated with child overweight status in children aged 12 to 17, girls, and children who live in households with incomes >4 times the federal poverty level. Child food insecurity demonstrated the same associations with being at risk for overweight or greater, as did household food insecurity, but associations were also seen in 3- to 5-year-old children, boys, and Mexican American children. Child food insecurity is significantly associated with child overweight status for children aged 12 to 17, girls, white children, and children in families with income ≤100% poverty level. Controlling for ethnicity, gender, age, and family poverty index level, childhood food insecurity is associated with a child being at risk for overweight status or greater, but not overweight status. CONCLUSIONS. Household and child food insecurity are associated with being at risk for overweight and overweight status among many demographic categories of children. Child food insecurity is independently associated with being at risk for overweight status or greater while controlling for important demographic variables. Future longitudinal research is required to determine whether food insecurity is causally related to child overweight status.

Agriculture · Context (archaeology) · Economic growth · Economics · Environmental health · Food insecurity · Food security · Geography · Obesity · Overweight · Poverty · Child Nutrition and Water Access · Demography · Food Security and Health in Diverse Populations · Medicine · Obesity, Physical Activity, Diet · Gerontology