Food Insecurity Among Pregnant and Recently Pregnant Emerging and Young Adults: An Online Cross-Sectional Survey Study

ABSTRACT

This online, cross-sectional study examined food insecurity and sleep quality among pregnant/recently pregnant women (N = 486). The prevalence of food insecurity was highest among emerging adults (69%), followed by young adults (57%) and middle-aged adults (31%). In adjusted models, emerging and young adults had 2.42 (1.19, 4.97) and 2.62 (1.60, 4.37) times the odds of food insecurity compared to middle-aged adults. Individuals reporting low food security (−0.29 [−0.44, −0.13]) and very low food security (−0.61 [−0.80, −0.41]) had lower sleep quality compared to individuals reporting food security. Emerging adult mothers are at risk of food insecurity and associated low sleep quality.

KEYWORDS:

• Food security
• young adult
• nutrition
• pregnancy
• sleep
• age

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This study was funded by the George Washington University Center of Excellence in Maternal and Child Health under Grant No T76MC35370 from the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) Maternal and Child Health Bureau. Its contents are solely the responsibility of the authors and do not necessarily represent the official views of the Health Resources & Services Administration (HRSA) Maternal and Child Health Bureau.