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BMC public health
Jul 29, 2024;24 (1): 2034.

Determinants of food insecurity among adults residing in peri-urban municipal settings in Flanders, Belgium.

Yasemin Inaç, Suzannah D'Hooghe, Karin De Ridder, Sarah Dury, Nico Van de Weghe, Eva M De Clercq, Delfien Van Dyck, Benedicte Deforche, Stefanie Vandevijvere
Author Information
  1. Yasemin Inaç: Sciensano, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Brussels, Belgium. Yasemin.Inac@Sciensano.be. ORCID
  2. Suzannah D'Hooghe: Sciensano, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Brussels, Belgium. ORCID
  3. Karin De Ridder: Sciensano, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Brussels, Belgium. ORCID
  4. Sarah Dury: Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Adult Educational Sciences, Brussels, Belgium. ORCID
  5. Nico Van de Weghe: Faculty of Sciences, Department of Geography, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium. ORCID
  6. Eva M De Clercq: Sciensano, Department of Chemical and Physical Health Risks, Brussels, Belgium. ORCID
  7. Delfien Van Dyck: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Movement and Sports Sciences, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium. ORCID
  8. Benedicte Deforche: Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Department of Public Health and Primary Care, Ghent University, Ghent, Belgium. ORCID
  9. Stefanie Vandevijvere: Sciensano, Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Brussels, Belgium. ORCID
PMID: 39075409 DOI: 10.1186/s12889-024-19389-7

Abstract

Food insecurity is a global public health issue associated with noncommunicable diseases. Individual factors are strongly associated with food insecurity, but there is limited literature on the broader impact of both the social and food environments on food insecurity in non-English speaking European countries, given that the research was predominantly conducted in Anglophone settings. In addition, these studies have mostly been conducted in urban areas. Therefore, this study aimed to identify the main determinants of food insecurity among adults living in peri-urban areas in Flanders, Belgium. Data on socio-demographics, neighborhood social cohesion, social isolation, and perceived food environments were collected from 567 adults through a self-administered questionnaire, and objective data on the food environment were obtained through (commercial) databases on food outlets. Food insecurity was measured using the USDA Household Food Security Survey Module. Multivariable logistic regression models revealed that lower socioeconomic status (OR14.11,95%CI:4.72;61.11), reasonable (OR4.16,95%CI: 2.11;8.47) to poor and very poor (OR6.54,95%CI: 2.11;8.47) subjective health status, and living in private (OR7.01, 95% CI:3.0;17.0) or government-assisted (OR6.32,95%CI: 3.13;13.26) rental housing significantly increased the odds of food insecurity. Additionally, residing in a neighborhood with low (OR2.64, 95% CI:1.13;6.26) to medium (OR2.45,95% CI:1.21;5.11) social cohesion, having a neutral opinion (OR4.12,95%CI:1.51;11.54) about the availability of fruit and vegetables in one's neighborhood, and having an opinion that fruit and vegetable prices are too expensive (OR5.43,95% CI 2.26;14.4) significantly increased the odds of experiencing food insecurity. This study underscores the need for policies that consider factors related to social and food environments, in addition to individual factors, to effectively address food insecurity.

Keywords

Food environment Food security Health inequities High-income countries Social environment

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MeSH Term

Humans
Belgium
Food Insecurity
Male
Female
Adult
Middle Aged
Surveys and Questionnaires
Urban Population
Neighborhood Characteristics
Socioeconomic Factors
Residence Characteristics
Aged
Young Adult
Food Supply
Journal Article

Word Cloud

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