Rahi Berna, Al Mashharawi Farah, Harb Hana, El Khoury-Malhame Myriam, Mattar Lama
Department of Human Sciences, College of Health Sciences, Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX 77341, USA.
Nutrition Program, Department of Nutrition and Food Science, School of Arts and Sciences, Lebanese American University, Chouran Beirut, P.O. Box 13-5053, Beirut 1102 2801, Lebanon.
Nutrients. 2025 Jan 17;17(2):330. doi: 10.3390/nu17020330.
Household food insecurity (HFI) is a serious public health concern in Lebanon. Adverse mental health issues have been reported among food insecure households in addition to physical and nutritional complications. Caregivers in food insecure families tend to adopt different coping mechanisms to mitigate the effects of food insecurity (FI) on their children.
This cross-sectional observational study aimed to explore the relationship between FI, maternal depression, child malnutrition, and differential coping mechanisms adopted by mothers.
A total of 219 women were enrolled in this study; FI was assessed using the household food insecurity assessment (HFIAS), maternal depression using the patient health questionnaire (PHQ-9), and their children's nutritional status through recall of anthropometric measurements. Pearson's correlations and logistic regressions were performed to evaluate the associations between HFI, maternal depression, and children's nutritional status.
A strong positive correlation between HFI and maternal depression ( = 0.001) and children's nutritional status ( = 0.008) was shown. Logistic regressions revealed that being food secure decreased the risk of maternal depression (OR = 0.328, 95% CI 0.125-0.863, = 0.024), while it did not predict children's nutritional status. Eight main themes related to coping mechanisms were identified.
This study highlights the understudied relationship between food insecurity and maternal depression, showing an increased prevalence of HFI among residents in Lebanon with a positive correlation with increased maternal depression. Further investigation is warranted to better explore how to mitigate the negative impact of food insecurity on mental health, maternal nutritional needs, and Infant and Young Child Feeding (IYCF) practices in Lebanon.
家庭粮食不安全是黎巴嫩一个严重的公共卫生问题。除了身体和营养方面的并发症外，粮食不安全家庭中还报告了不良心理健康问题。粮食不安全家庭的照料者倾向于采取不同的应对机制来减轻粮食不安全对其子女的影响。
本横断面观察性研究旨在探讨粮食不安全、母亲抑郁、儿童营养不良以及母亲采用的不同应对机制之间的关系。
本研究共纳入219名女性；使用家庭粮食不安全评估量表（HFIAS）评估粮食不安全状况，使用患者健康问卷（PHQ-9）评估母亲抑郁状况，并通过回忆人体测量数据评估其子女的营养状况。采用Pearson相关性分析和逻辑回归分析来评估家庭粮食不安全、母亲抑郁和儿童营养状况之间的关联。
结果显示家庭粮食不安全与母亲抑郁（P = 0.001）和儿童营养状况（P = 0.008）之间存在强正相关。逻辑回归分析表明，粮食安全可降低母亲抑郁的风险（OR = 0.328，95%CI 0.125 - 0.863，P = 0.024），但不能预测儿童的营养状况。确定了与应对机制相关的八个主要主题。
本研究突出了粮食不安全与母亲抑郁之间未得到充分研究的关系，表明黎巴嫩居民中家庭粮食不安全的患病率增加，且与母亲抑郁增加呈正相关。有必要进行进一步调查，以更好地探索如何减轻粮食不安全对黎巴嫩心理健康、母亲营养需求以及婴幼儿喂养做法的负面影响。
