Graduate School of Public Health and Health Policy, Urban Food Policy Institute, City University of New York, New York, NY, USA.
Institute for Implementation Science in Population Health, City University of New York, New York, NY, USA.
Public Health Rep. 2023 Jul-Aug;138(4):671-680. doi: 10.1177/00333549231170203. Epub 2023 May 20.
While much has been reported about the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on food insecurity, longitudinal data and the variability experienced by people working in various industries are limited. This study aims to further characterize people experiencing food insecurity during the pandemic in terms of employment, sociodemographic characteristics, and degree of food insecurity.
The study sample consisted of people enrolled in the Communities, Households and SARS-CoV-2 Epidemiology (CHASING) COVID Cohort Study from visit 1 (April-July 2020) through visit 7 (May-June 2021). We created weights to account for participants with incomplete or missing data. We used descriptive statistics and logistic regression models to determine employment and sociodemographic correlates of food insecurity. We also examined patterns of food insecurity and use of food support programs.
Of 6740 participants, 39.6% (n = 2670) were food insecure. Non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic (vs non-Hispanic White) participants, participants in households with children (vs no children), and participants with lower (vs higher) income and education levels had higher odds of food insecurity. By industry, people employed in construction, leisure and hospitality, and trade, transportation, and utilities industries had the highest prevalence of both food insecurity and income loss. Among participants reporting food insecurity, 42.0% (1122 of 2670) were persistently food insecure (≥4 consecutive visits) and 43.9% (1172 of 2670) did not use any food support programs.
The pandemic resulted in widespread food insecurity in our cohort, much of which was persistent. In addition to addressing sociodemographic disparities, future policies should focus on the needs of those working in industries vulnerable to economic disruption and ensure those experiencing food insecurity can access food support programs for which they are eligible.
虽然有很多关于 COVID-19 大流行对粮食不安全影响的报道，但关于纵向数据和不同行业人员所经历的变化的资料有限。本研究旨在进一步描述大流行期间经历粮食不安全的人群在就业、社会人口统计学特征和粮食不安全程度方面的情况。
研究样本包括参加 Communities, Households and SARS-CoV-2 Epidemiology (CHASING) COVID 队列研究的人员，研究时间为第 1 次访视（2020 年 4 月至 7 月）至第 7 次访视（2021 年 5 月至 6 月）。我们创建了权重以考虑到数据不完整或缺失的参与者。我们使用描述性统计和逻辑回归模型来确定就业和社会人口统计学因素与粮食不安全的相关性。我们还研究了粮食不安全的模式和粮食支持计划的使用情况。
在 6740 名参与者中，39.6%（n=2670）存在粮食不安全。与非西班牙裔白人相比，非西班牙裔黑人、西班牙裔（vs 非西班牙裔白人）参与者、有子女的家庭（vs 无子女的家庭）和收入及教育程度较低的参与者，粮食不安全的可能性更高。按行业划分，从事建筑、休闲和酒店、贸易、运输和公用事业的人员粮食不安全和收入损失的比例最高。在报告粮食不安全的参与者中，42.0%（2670 人中的 1122 人）持续存在粮食不安全（≥4 次连续访视），43.9%（2670 人中的 1172 人）未使用任何粮食支持计划。
大流行导致我们队列中的人群广泛出现粮食不安全，其中大部分是持续性的。除了解决社会人口统计学方面的差异外，未来的政策还应关注那些从事易受经济干扰行业的人员的需求，并确保那些经历粮食不安全的人能够获得他们有资格获得的粮食支持计划。
