Food insecurity is associated with low diet quality and unhealthy cooking and eating habits in Iranian women

• Published in: Journal of health, population and nutrition population and nutrition, 2024-03, Vol.43 (1), p.42-42, Article 42
• Main Authors: Kohanmoo, Ali, Hashemzadeh, Maral, Teymouri, Maryam, Zare, Morteza, Akhlaghi, Masoumeh
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Academic achievement; Analysis; Ascorbic acid; Associations; Breakfast; Calcium; Carbohydrates; Cooking; COVID-19; Cross-sectional studies; Developing countries; Diet; Dietary pattern; Eating; Eating behavior; Eating habits; Fish; Folic acid; Food; Food consumption; Food insecurity; Food intake; Food security; Fruit; Habits; Health aspects; Health care; Healthy food; Ingestion; Insecurity; LDCs; Low income groups; Magnesium; Marital status; Meat; Metabolic disorders; Nutrient deficiency; Nutrients; Nutrition; Nutrition research; Pattern analysis; Poultry; Primary care; Primary health care; Questionnaires; Regression analysis; Sodium; Statistical analysis; Type 2 diabetes; Variance analysis; Vegetables; Vitamin A; Women; Womens health
• ISSN: 2072-1315; 1606-0997; 2072-1315
• DOI: 10.1186/s41043-024-00533-3

Food insecurity affects diet and nutrition intakes. We explored the relationship between food insecurity and dietary intakes in a group of Iranian women. The cross-sectional study was performed on 190 healthy females aged 20-55 years attending primary healthcare centers in Shiraz. Food insecurity was evaluated by Household Food Insecurity Access Scale, which is a validated tool for assessing food insecurity in developing countries. Diet was assessed using a food frequency questionnaire. The association of dietary patterns and food insecurity was assessed by linear regression. Assessment of dietary intakes revealed that consumption of red meat, poultry, fish, dairy, fruits, non-starchy vegetables, and nuts decreased whereas that of grains, processed meats, potato, and sugary foods increased with increasing food insecurity. Among nutrients, carbohydrates, fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, folic acid, potassium, calcium, and magnesium decreased while fat and sodium increased as food insecurity increased. Three major dietary patterns were detected. Healthy dietary patterns showed inverse associations with food insecurity in the crude (β = -0.422 and - 0.435, P