University of Warwick 16 th April
2015

•FAO definition: ‘ all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life ’
•USDA definition of food in security: ‘ limited or uncertain availability of nutritionally accepted or safe foods’

1. Availability of foods
2. Physical and economic access to foods
3. Food utilization

• Food insecurity not routinely measured in UK surveys
• Income, SES or other measure of deprivation most commonly used

•
• Spend more
Buy less
• Trade down

Consumer reaction to high food prices between 2007 and 2013
Taken from Family Food 2013 – DEFRA

Consumer reaction to high food prices between 2007 and 2013
Taken from Family Food 2013 – DEFRA

Trends in fruit and vegetable purchases 2001 -2013
Taken from Family Food 2013 –
DEFRA

Mean price of foods by Eatwell food group, 2002 –2012.
Jones NRV, Conklin AI, Suhrcke M, Monsivais P (2014) The Growing Price Gap between More and Less Healthy Foods: Analysis of a Novel Longitudinal UK Dataset. PLoS ONE 9(10): e109343. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0109343
http://127.0.0.1:8081/plosone/article?id=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0109343

Mean price of foods by Food Standards Agency nutrient profiling score category,
2002 –2012
Jones NRV, Conklin AI, Suhrcke M, Monsivais P (2014) The Growing Price Gap between More and Less Healthy Foods: Analysis of a Novel Longitudinal UK Dataset. PLoS ONE 9(10): e109343. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0109343
http://127.0.0.1:8081/plosone/article?id=info:doi/10.1371/journal.pone.0109343

% achieving 5-a-day by equivalised income quintile NDNS
2008/09 – 2011/12
Lowest quintile
Highest quintile
% 30
25
20
40
35
15
10
5
0
11-18 years 19-64 years

Proportion adults aged 16 years and over achieving 5-a-day by income Health Survey for England 2011
Taken from Social and economic inequalities in diet and physical activity
– Public Health England 2013

Energy and macronutrient intake for adults aged 19 to 64 years by equivalised income quintile NDNS 2008/09 – 2011/12
Food energy (kcal)
% E from Fat
% E from Non-Milk
Extrinsic Sugars
Fibre (g)
Lowest Quintile Highest Quintile
1678 1790
33.7
14.1
12.3
35.5
11.5
14.5

% RNI for selected micronutrients by equivalised income quintile NDNS 2008/09 – 2011/12

% with iron intake below LRNI by equivalised income quintile
NDNS 2008/09 – 2011/12
Women aged 19 to 64 years
50
40
30
20
10
0
Iron
Lowest quintile
Highest quintile

• Food insecurity based on USDA questions
• Individuals – adults and children categorized into 3 groups
Food secure 71%
Mildly food insecure 15%
Moderately or severely food insecure 14%
• Relationships with diet very clear for women (less clear for men and children)

LOWER amounts of :
 Wholemeal bread
 Wholegrain breakfast cereals*


Fruit
Meat & meat dishes
GREATER amounts of
 White bread*



Processed meat*
Soft drinks (diet & not diet)*
Alcoholic drinks*
* Not statistically significant
Holmes (2008) The influence of food security and other social and environmental factors on diet in the
National Low Income Diet and Nutrition Survey. Proc Nut Soc 67 , E88

80
60
40
20
0
180
160
140
120
100
Thiamin Folate Zinc
Food secure
Food insecure: mild
Food insecure: moderate/severe
Iron Magnesium
Holmes (2008) The influence of food security and other social and environmental factors on diet in the
National Low Income Diet and Nutrition Survey. Proc Nut Soc 67 , E88

60
50
Food secure
Food insecure: mild
Food insecure: moderate/severe
40
30
20
10
0
Iron Potassium Magnesium
Holmes (2008) The influence of food security and other social and environmental factors on diet in the
National Low Income Diet and Nutrition Survey. Proc Nut Soc 67 , E88
Zinc

Adults in food insecure households more likely to
 have type 2 diabetes and hypertension (Seligman 2007)

 have increased predicted 10 year cardiovascular disease risk (Ford 2013) be overweight - women only (Townsend 2001; Basiotis
2002; Ford 2013)

Food insecure households may have: :



Fewer opportunities for physical activity
Cycles of food deprivation and over-eating
High levels of stress
FRAC Food Insecurity and Obesity: Understanding the Connections 2011.Basiotis PP, Lino M. Food insufficiency and prevalence of overweight among adult women. Nutrition Insights 2002;26:1 –2.

•
•
Need to include food security measures in UK national health surveys – like NDNS or HSE??
Longitudinal data to determine causal link?