Citation
Testa, Alexander & Jackson, Dylan B. (2019). Food insecurity, food deserts, and waist-to-height ratio: Variation by sex and race/ethnicity. Journal of Community Health. vol. 44 (3) pp. 445-450Abstract
The purpose of this study is to investigate the association between two food-related hardships—food insecurity and living in a food desert—on waist-to-height ratio (WHtR). Data on participants from waves I and IV of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health) were analyzed. The association between food-related hardships and waist-to-height ratio were examined using logistic regression. Models were stratified by sex and race/ethnicity to examine potential moderating effects. Study results suggest food insecurity has a positive association with WHtR among female respondents (OR = 1.360, p = .017). Living in a food desert has a positive association with WHtR among both females (OR = 1.247, p = .026) and males (OR = 1.245, p = .024). In models stratified by race/ethnicity living in a food desert is positively associated with WHtR among White respondents (OR = 1.279, p = .003). Given the link between food-related hardships and obesity, targeted interventions that alleviate food insecurity and inadequate access to healthy food retailers could be effective in reducing obesity.URL
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10900-018-00601-wReference Type
Journal ArticleJournal Title
Journal of Community HealthAuthor(s)
Testa, AlexanderJackson, Dylan B.