Obesity, Nutrition and Eating Disorders
PO-136
Rate of food insecurity was found to be lower than previous studies, which showed approximately 50% of individuals who used public mental health services faced food insecurity (Adams et al., 2021). The study sample was not limited to public mental health service users, which is the likely cause of this lower rate.
Conclusion/Implications: Food insecurity is associated with poorer mental health outcomes, which have been associated with poorer health outcomes. The presence of perceived social support does not mitigate the need for addressing food insecurity. There is a need for both medical and mental health providers who care for people with co-morbid diabetes and psychosis to specifically address food insecurity.
References:
Adams WE, Rogers ES, Edwards JP, Lord EM, McKnight L, Barbone M. Impact of COVID-19 on Peer Support Specialists in the United States: Findings From a Cross-Sectional Online Survey. Psychiatric Services. 2021 Jun 23:appi-ps.
Coleman-Jensen AJ. US food insecurity status: toward a refined definition. Social Indicators Research. 2010 Jan 1;95(2):215-30.
Hammami N, Leatherdale ST, Elgar FJ. Does social support moderate the association between hunger and mental health in youth? A gender-specific investigation from the Canadian Health Behaviour in School-aged Children study. Nutrition journal. 2020 Dec;19(1):1-1.
Mangurian CV et al. Diabetes and prediabetes prevalence by race and ethnicity. Diabetes care. 2018 Jul 1;41(7):e119-20.
Na M, Miller M, Ballard T, Mitchell DC, Hung YW, Melgar-Quiñonez H. Does social support modify the relationship between food insecurity and poor mental health? Evidence from thirty-nine sub-Saharan African countries. Public health nutrition. 2019 Apr;22(5):874-81.
Olfson M et al. Premature mortality among adults with schizophrenia in the United States. JAMA psychiatry. 2015 Dec 1;72(12):1172-81.
Seligman HK et al. Food insecurity and glycemic control among low-income patients with type 2 diabetes. Diabetes care. 2012 Feb 1;35(2):233-8.
Stubbs B, Vancampfort D, De Hert M, Mitchell AJ.Acta Psychiatr Scand. 2015 Aug;132(2):144-57.
Regression analysis showed that social support did not significantly moderate the relationship between food security and frequency of psychiatric symptoms.
Michelle Wiese, MD, MPH
– Fellow, University of Washington Medical Center, Seattle, WA, United States