Abstract
While food insecurity (FI) has been extensively studied in many countries, there have been few empirical contributions in Poland to date. The main objective of our research was to identify the socio-demographic factors affecting the risk of FI in Poland within 2014–2019. Moreover, we aimed to examine the effects of the family-oriented social program “Family 500+” by comparing the situation in various types of households with children a few years before and after the program was launched. The analysis was based on the set of eight-item FI indicators adopted by the Food and Agriculture Organization using the Gallup World Poll nationally representative survey data. Based on our results the most vulnerable groups in the context of FI were identified. We confirmed the importance of education, gender, age, marital status, household composition, status of employment and income in preventing FI. The effectiveness of the support program in reducing FI was demonstrated as households with at least three children experienced significant improvement in the FI status during the studied years. These findings should be especially important in the context of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on FI. As FI can affect the quality and quantity of food choices it is associated with a poorer health status, which increases the risk of infection, including COVID-19, and worsens recovery prognosis. Planning an efficient response to the pandemic requires a comprehension of the increased risk of exposure experienced by people, especially those who are food insecure.
Highlights
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) data, 821 million people in the world are undernourished
As food insecurity (FI) can affect the quality and quantity of food choices it is associated with a poorer health status, which increases the risk of infection, including COVID-19, and worsens recovery prognosis
The sample was drawn proportional to the population, and the country was stratified by region and by population size strata [30,45,46]
Summary
According to the World Health Organization (WHO) data, 821 million people in the world are undernourished. This means that one in nine of the world population habitually consumes an insufficient amount of food to meet individual dietary needs [1], experiencing food insecurity. FI occurs when individuals and/or families in a household adjust their dietary intake or preferences because of a lack of physical or economic resources [3]. FI risk factors are primarily financial, but socio-demographic factors (education, race/ethnicity, family composition, etc.), time, employment skills, housing status, health status, food skills or capabilities, health insurance status, social support, past economic hardship, and the immediate food environment
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