What is Food Insecurity?
“In 2016, an estimated 1 in 8 Americans were food insecure, equating to 42 million Americans including 13 million children.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) defines food insecurity as a lack of consistent access to enough food for an active, healthy life.
It is important to know that hunger and food insecurity are closely related, but distinct, concepts. Hunger refers to a personal, physical sensation of discomfort, while food insecurity refers to a lack of available financial resources for food at the level of the household.
Policy evaluation, through both quantitative and qualitative research, reveals food insecurity to be a complex problem. It does not exist in isolation, as low-income families are affected by multiple, overlapping issues like affordable housing, social isolation, health problems, medical costs, and low wages. Many do not have what they need to meet basic needs and these challenges increase a family’s risk of food insecurity. Effective responses to food insecurity will need to address these overlapping challenges.
Taken together, issues such as affordable housing, social isolation, education level, unemployment or underemployment and food insecurity are important social determinants of health [ii] defined as the “conditions in the environments in which people are born, live, learn, work, play, worship and age that affect a wide range of health, functioning and quality-of-life outcomes and risks.” HungerandHealth.org explores the impact of food insecurity as a social determinant of health and its effect on individual and population health outcomes.
Poverty and food insecurity in the United States are closely related. Not all people living below the poverty line experience food insecurity, and people living above the poverty line can experience food insecurity. Wages and other critical household expenses (such as caring for an ill child) can also help predict food insecurity among people living in the United States.”
-excerpt from Feeding America Hunger+Health page
If interested in learning more about food insecurity, please visit: <https://hungerandhealth.feedingamerica.org/understand-food-insecurity/>
Food insecurities impact both risk and management of chronic diseases. This Illuminating Intersections: Hunger and Health video depicts how these two are related.
Please visit https://eat-move-save.extension.illinois.edu/ to learn more about healthier lifestyles!
