COVID-19-Associated Food Insecurity and Mental Health Symptoms Among Latinx Adults in the United States.

U.S. Latinx adults were disproportionately burdened by COVID-19 infection, as well as food insecurity compared to their non- Hispanic white adults. It is less clear if within-group variations among U.S. Latinx adults exist in food insecurity and mental health outcomes. We conducted a secondary data analysis of repeated cross-sectional survey waves from the Understanding America Study (UAS) study ( = 182,865). We computed multivariable generalized linear regression models to examine associations between food insecurity, demographic characteristics, and depressive symptoms. Participants with a history of food insecurity had a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms compared to those without a history of food insecurity (21.1% compared to 5.23%,  < .0001). Mexican participants reported a significantly higher prevalence of depression compared to Latino participants of Puerto Rican, Central American, or another Latino ethnicity (8.94% compared to 2.84%, 1.76%, and 2.91%, respectively,  < .0001). Associations of self-reported food insecurity among men and women varied by asthma status. Our study demonstrates that participants with a history of food insecurity had a higher prevalence of depressive symptoms compared to those without a history of food insecurity. Our findings also illuminate the importance of disaggregating U.S. Latinx adults when examining associations between food insecurity and mental health.