PEDIATRICS Vol. 117 No. 2 February 2006, pp. 464-473 (doi:10.1542/peds.2005-0582)
Household Food Insecurity and Overweight Status in Young School Children: Results From the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study
School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine, Tulane University, New Orleans, Louisiana
OBJECTIVE. Recent work on the determinants of obesity has shown a positive association between household food insecurity and overweight status in adult women, yet research exploring this issue in children has been inconclusive. In this study we examine the association between food insecurity and overweight status in young school children by using a large, nationally representative sample.
METHODS. Data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort (ECLS-K) were analyzed. Replicate heights and weights were measured on kindergarten children (N = 16889) in the spring of 1999. Children with a body mass index 
95th percentile of their gender-specific BMI-for-age chart were considered overweight. Food-insecurity status was assessed by using the full 18-question US Department of Agriculture Household Food Security Scale. Multivariate logistic regression was used to assess the relationship between overweight and food-insecurity status while controlling for potential demographic, socioeconomic, and behavioral confounders.
RESULTS. Overall, 11.2% of the girls and 11.8% of the boys were overweight. Children from food-insecure households were 20% less likely to be overweight than their food-secure counterparts. Similar results on the food-insecurity/overweight link were found across a range of different models and expressions for key variables. Positive predictors of overweight status included low physical activity, television watching for >2 hours/day, high birth weight, black or Latino ethnicity, and low income.
CONCLUSIONS. There are strong arguments for reducing food insecurity among households with young children. This research suggests that these arguments would be based on reasons other than a potential link to obesity. Low activity levels and excessive television watching, however, were strongly related to overweight status, a finding that supports continued efforts to intervene in these areas.
Key Words: food insecurity • hunger • overweight • obesity • children • ECLS-K
Abbreviations: NHANES—National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey • ECLS-K—Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten Cohort • PSU—primary sampling unit • CDC—Centers for Disease Control and Prevention • USDA—US Department of Agriculture • PIR—poverty index ratio • OR—odds ratio
Accepted Jun 29, 2005.
CiteULike 
Connotea 
Del.icio.us 
Digg 
Facebook 
Reddit 
Technorati 
Twitter What's this?
This article has been cited by other articles:
|
|
 |
|
  M. Melchior, A. Caspi, L. M. Howard, A. P. Ambler, H. Bolton, N. Mountain, and T. E. Moffitt Mental Health Context of Food Insecurity: a Representative Cohort of Families With Young Children Pediatrics, October 1, 2009; 124(4): e564 - e572. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 D. C. Hernandez and A. Jacknowitz Transient, but Not Persistent, Adult Food Insecurity Influences Toddler Development J. Nutr., August 1, 2009; 139(8): 1517 - 1524. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
C. Gundersen, S. Garasky, and B. J. Lohman Food Insecurity Is Not Associated with Childhood Obesity as Assessed Using Multiple Measures of Obesity J. Nutr., June 1, 2009; 139(6): 1173 - 1178. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 R. Widome, D. Neumark-Sztainer, P. J. Hannan, J. Haines, and M. Story Eating When There is Not Enough to Eat: Eating Behaviors and Perceptions of Food Among Food-Insecure Youths Am J Public Health, May 1, 2009; 99(5): 822 - 828. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 C. Cutler-Triggs, G. E. Fryer, T. J. Miyoshi, and M. Weitzman Increased Rates and Severity of Child and Adult Food Insecurity in Households With Adult Smokers Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med, November 1, 2008; 162(11): 1056 - 1062. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
E. Feinberg, P. L. Kavanagh, R. L. Young, and N. Prudent Food Insecurity and Compensatory Feeding Practices Among Urban Black Families Pediatrics, October 1, 2008; 122(4): e854 - e860. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
C. Gundersen, B. J. Lohman, S. Garasky, S. Stewart, and J. Eisenmann Food Security, Maternal Stressors, and Overweight Among Low-Income US Children: Results From the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (1999-2002) Pediatrics, September 1, 2008; 122(3): e529 - e540. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
E. J. Maher, G. Li, L. Carter, and D. B. Johnson Preschool Child Care Participation and Obesity at the Start of Kindergarten Pediatrics, August 1, 2008; 122(2): 322 - 330. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
C. Gundersen, B. J. Lohman, J. C. Eisenmann, S. Garasky, and S. D. Stewart Child-Specific Food Insecurity and Overweight Are Not Associated in a Sample of 10- to 15-Year-Old Low-Income Youth J. Nutr., February 1, 2008; 138(2): 371 - 378. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
S. Isanaka, M. Mora-Plazas, S. Lopez-Arana, A. Baylin, and E. Villamor Food Insecurity Is Highly Prevalent and Predicts Underweight but Not Overweight in Adults and School Children from Bogota, Colombia J. Nutr., December 1, 2007; 137(12): 2747 - 2755. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
 |
|
 C. K. Landy Children who had experienced family food insufficiency were more likely to be overweight at 4.5 years of age Evid. Based Nurs., April 1, 2007; 10(2): 58 - 58. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
|
|
|
|
A. F. Meyers, R. J. Karp, and J. G. Kral Poverty, Food Insecurity, and Obesity in Children Pediatrics, November 1, 2006; 118(5): 2265a - 2266. [Full Text] [PDF]
|
|
