Food insecurity in Dutch disadvantaged neighbourhoods: a socio-ecological approach

• Published in: Journal of nutritional science (Cambridge) Vol. 11; p. e52
• Main Authors: Janssen, Jolien M. M., van der Velde, Laura A., Kiefte-de Jong, Jessica C.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cambridge, UK Cambridge University Press 2022
• Subjects: Body mass index; Cross-Sectional Studies; Data collection; Determinants; Diet; Dietary Surveys and Nutritional Epidemiology; ecological models; Educational attainment; Employment; Explained variance; Food Insecurity; food quality; Food security; Food Supply; Households; Humans; income; Lifestyles; marital status; Mental health; Migration; Neighborhoods; Netherlands; public health; Questionnaires; regression analysis; Religion; Social ecological model; Social networks; Sociodemographics; Socioeconomic Factors; variance; Vocational education; Vulnerable Populations; Netherlands; Hague Netherlands; Determinants; Food insecurity; Social ecological model; Explained variance; Food security; PCS, physical component summary; SNAP, Supplement Nutrition and Assistance Program; FS, food secure; FI, food insecure; WMO, ‘Wet medisch-wetenschappelijk onderzoek’, in English: Medical Research Involving Human Subjects Act; MCS, mental component summary; IQR, interquartile range; MI, multiple imputation; BMI, body mass index; ISCED, International Standard Classification of Education; NNC, Netherlands Nutrition Center; SF-12, 12-Item Short Form Health Survey; LUMC, Leiden University Medical Center; FFQ, food frequency questionnaire; USDA, United States Department of Agriculture; SEM, social ecological model; MAR, missing at random; DHC, Dutch Health Council; SEP, socio-economic position
• ISSN: 2048-6790; 2048-6790
• DOI: 10.1017/jns.2022.48

Food insecurity is an important public health concern; however, research into this phenomenon within the Netherlands is limited. Food insecurity is not solely related to individual factors, but can also be influenced by various factors in the social and physical environment. Therefore, this study aimed to identify determinants of food insecurity within the personal, social and physical environment, based on the social ecological model (SEM), and to identify their relative importance for experiencing food insecurity. The study population consisted of 307 participants living in disadvantaged neighbourhoods of the Dutch city The Hague, of which approximately one-quarter were food insecure. Participant characteristics showing bivariate associations P < 0⋅20 were placed in a predetermined level of the SEM, after which a multivariate logistic regression was performed for each level and the Nagelkerke pseudo R2 was presented. Determinants of food insecurity were BMI, gross monthly income, highest educational attainment, smoking status, diet quality, employment status, marital status and religion (P < 0⋅05). The results showed that 29⋅7 % of the total variance in food insecurity status was explained by all included determinants together. The personal, social and physical environment explained 20⋅6, 14⋅0 and 2⋅4 % of the total variance, respectively. Our findings suggest that determinants within the personal environment are most important for explaining differences in experienced food insecurity. The present study contributes to furthering the knowledge about the relative importance of the personal, social and physical environment, indicating that determinants within the personal environment may be most promising for developing targeted interventions to reduce food insecurity.