Food insecurity is associated with food consumption patterns and anthropometric measures but not serum micronutrient levels in adults in rural Tanzania
- 3 March 2010
- journal article
- Published by Cambridge University Press (CUP) in Public Health Nutrition
- Vol. 13 (9), 1438-1444
- https://doi.org/10.1017/s1368980010000327
Abstract
The purpose of the present paper is to assess the relationship between food insecurity and food consumption patterns, anthropometric measures and serum micronutrient levels in rural Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. A population-based cross-sectional study was carried out between March and May of 2005. Rural Kilimanjaro, Tanzania. Analysis was restricted to 1014 adults aged 15-44 years with children and complete data. A large majority of the participants (91 %) reported some kind of food insecurity. Food insecurity was significantly associated with age, marital status and occupation. Participants reporting food insecurity were significantly less likely to frequently consume animal products, fruits and vegetables compared with participants categorized as food secure. Women categorized as experiencing individual food insecurity had a larger waist circumference than food-secure women (P = 0.026) while the mean BMI of women appeared to decline if they had a child who was food insecure (P = 0.038). There were no observed differences in serum micronutrient levels by food insecurity status. Food insecurity is highly prevalent and associated with food consumption patterns, waist circumference and BMI of women in rural Tanzania. Further studies should apply self-report measures in assessing food insecurity to larger and more diversified populations.Keywords
This publication has 29 references indexed in Scilit:
- Validation of the Radimer/Cornell food insecurity measure in rural Kilimanjaro, TanzaniaPublic Health Nutrition, 2008
- Health and Dietary Patterns of the Elderly in BotswanaJournal of Nutrition Education and Behavior, 2007
- Relationship between Food Insecurity and Body Composition in Ugandans Living in Urban KampalaJournal of the American Dietetic Association, 2007
- Is the adapted Radimer/Cornell questionnaire valid to measure food insecurity of urban households in Tehran, Iran?Public Health Nutrition, 2007
- Seasonal food insecurity and perceived social support in rural TanzaniaPublic Health Nutrition, 2007
- Education and poverty reduction in TanzaniaInternational Journal of Educational Development, 2006
- Feeding frequency and nutrient content of foods commonly consumed in the Iringa and Morogoro regions in TanzaniaInternational Journal of Food Sciences and Nutrition, 2006
- Obesity and household food insecurity: evidence from a sample of rural households in MalaysiaEuropean Journal of Clinical Nutrition, 2005
- Underreporting of energy intake from a self-administered food-frequency questionnaire completed by adults in MontrealPublic Health Nutrition, 2004
- HIV and Reproductive Tract Infections in a Total Village Population in Rural Kilimanjaro, TanzaniaJAIDS Journal of Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndromes, 1997