Session: Predictors of Diet Quality Across the Lifespan (Oral 17)
(OR17-07-23) The Association Between Sociodemographic Factors and Fruit and Vegetable Intake Among Households With Young Children (<11 Years) With Food Insecurity
Mary Kathryn Edwards, MS, MBA, RDN: No relevant financial relationship(s) with ineligible companies to disclose.
Objectives: Previous research has shown that food insecurity disproportionately affects households with children and households of minority races/ethnicities. The objective of this study is to describe the association between sociodemographic factors such as age, race, household size, Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participation, and language spoken and fruit and vegetable intake of Bronx families with young children who report being food insecure.
Methods: A cross-sectional study was administered online via Qualtrics from July to October 2022. Inclusion criteria included adults (main grocery purchasers), living in the Bronx, with children aged < 11 years, and living < 130% of the federal poverty line. Families were recruited from Head Start programs and 91 completed the survey. The survey assessed sociodemographic characteristics and included two validated questionnaires: the USDA’s US Household Six-Item Food Security Scale and the National Cancer Institute’s Fruit and Vegetable Intake screener (FVI). Fruit and vegetable intake was aggregated and scored into meeting or not meeting the USDA’s daily recommendations for FVI (3.5 servings). Multivariate logistic regression models were used to analyze the relationship between FVI and age, race, household size, SNAP participation, and language spoken.
Results: The majority of participants (91%) were women, identified as Hispanic (79%), were < 40 years old (78%), participated in SNAP (74%), and were Spanish-speaking (58%). English speakers had a 10 fold greater ids of meeting daily FVI (OR: 10.37; 95% CI[10.65,40.51] versus Spanish speakers, after controlling other sociodemographic covariants. English language was significantly associated with increased FVI with an increase of 1.6 additional servings per day compared to Spanish speakers (p=0.001, X2).
Conclusions: This study indicates that for food insecure households with young children, English language was a predictor of meeting the USDA’s daily FVI recommendation. Language may be a proxy for immigration status, acculturation, and literacy, and should be further considered in programs and services promoting access to heathy food and nutrition. Dietitians should focus their efforts on reaching food insecure families whose English is not their primary language, as they are at risk for poor diet quality.
