Lack of mental health services during pandemic linked to food insufficiency
23/07/2021
The findings of a new study suggest that Americans who experienced food insufficiency during the COVID-19 pandemic were three times as likely to lack mental health support in comparison to those who did not experience it.
This study was published in the journal Public Health Nutrition. The most extreme form of food insecurity, food insufficiency occurs when families do not have enough eat. Among a nationally representative sample of 68,611 adults who participated in the US Census Household Pulse Survey in October 2020, 11 per cent reported food insufficiency. Of those, 24 per cent also reported an unmet mental health need compared to 9 per cent of food-sufficient adults.
"Hunger, exhaustion, and stress-related to not getting enough food to eat may lead to depression and anxiety," said lead author, Jason Nagata, MD, assistant professor of pediatrics at the University of California, San Francisco.
"The experience of food insecurity could lead affected people to prioritize food over other needs such as seeking health care, using up considerable time and energy to navigate food pantries and free meal services, or locate and visit affordable food stores," added Nagata.
Food insufficiency was also associated with higher use of psychiatric medications: 27 per cent of food-insufficient adults reported psychiatric medication use compared to 19 per cent of food-sufficient adults.
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