Abstract
During the past two decades, the rates of food insecurity and obesity have risen. Although a relationship between these two seemingly-paradoxical states has not been repeatedly seen in men, research suggests that a correlation between them exists in women. This study examines nutritional outcomes of household food insecurity among mothers in rural Malaysia. A cross-sectional survey of low-income households was conducted, and 223 households with mothers aged 18-55 years, who were non-lactating, non-pregnant, and had at least one child aged 2-12 years, were purposively selected. A questionnaire was administered that included the Radimer/Cornell Scale, items about sociodemographic characteristics, and anthropometric measurements. Of the households, 16.1% were food-secure whereas 83.9% experienced some kind of food insecurity: 29.6% of households were food-insecure, 19.3% contained individuals who were food-insecure, and 35.0% fell into the 'child hunger' category. The result reported that household-size, total monthly income, income per capita, and food expenditure were significant risk factors of household food insecurity. Although there was a high prevalence of overweight and obese mothers (52%) and 47.1% had at-risk waist-circumference (> or = 80 cm), no significant association was found between food insecurity, body mass index, and waist-circumference. In conclusion, the rates of household food insecurity and overweight and obesity were high in the study population, although they are looking paradoxical. Longitudinal studies with larger sample-sizes are recommended to further examine the relationship between food insecurity and obesity.
Highlights
Food insecurity, as defined by the Life Sciences Research Office, exists “whenever the availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods or the ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways is limited or uncertain” [1]
Obesity may occur in households that are food-insecure as Nutritional outcomes and food insecurity in rural Malaysia evidenced by the co-existence of underweight and overweight in the same poor households [18,19,20]
The aims of this study were to determine the sociodemographic factors which related to household food insecurity in rural Malaysia and to examine whether household food insecurity is associated with maternal nutritional status in this population
Summary
As defined by the Life Sciences Research Office, exists “whenever the availability of nutritionally adequate and safe foods or the ability to acquire acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways is limited or uncertain” [1]. Households suffering from food insecurity are more likely to Nutritional outcomes and food insecurity in rural Malaysia evidenced by the co-existence of underweight and overweight in the same poor households [18,19,20]. In these countries, while positive associations between obesity and food insecurity with poverty have been well-documented and elucidated, the association between food insecurity and obesity and its plausible explanation remained elusive. The association between household food insecurity and adverse health outcomes of adults has been established, its relationship with nutritional status has not been [22] This claim is based on previous studies [23,24,25,26]. The aims of this study were to determine the sociodemographic factors which related to household food insecurity in rural Malaysia and to examine whether household food insecurity is associated with maternal nutritional status in this population
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