ARS | Publication request: HEALTHY EATING INDEX DIFFERENCES IN FOOD SECURE AND FOOD INSECURE HOUSEHOLDS IN THE LOWER MISSISSIPPI DELTA REGION

Submitted to: Journal of Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology
Publication Type: Abstract Only
Publication Acceptance Date: November 12, 2003
Publication Date: April 23, 2004
Citation: McCabe Sellers, B.J., Simpson, P., Bowman, S.A., Gossett, J.M., Szeto, K.L., Champagne, C.M., Bogle, M. 2004. Healthy Eating Index differences in food secure and food insecure households in the Lower Mississippi Delta region [abstract]. Journal of Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology. 18(4):A109.

Technical Abstract: Recent studies suggest that food insecurity is associated with poorer health and obesity and that the US Household Food Security Scale is a robust approach to studying health and diet relationships. The Healthy Eating Index (HEI) provides an overall measure of diet quality. HEI scores of 1659 adults in households identified as food secure (FS) (n=1294) or food insecure (FI) (n=365) in 36 counties/parishes Lower Mississippi Delta of Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi were compared. FI HEI's differ from FS in overall quality (p<0.001), especially in subscores for vegetables, milk, cholesterol, and variety. Both groups scored low in grains, fruits, meat, total fat, saturated fat, and overall HEI scores. Children (FS vs FI, n= 330, 110) did not appear to differ in HEI scores by univariate comparisons. These data suggest that interventions promoting vegetables and fruits, low fat milk products, and variety would most improve the diet quality in this high risk population. Supported by ARS/USDA Project#6251-53000-003-00D.