Food Insecurity and Health-Related Quality of Life: A Cross-Sectional Analysis of Older Adults in Florida, U.S.

ABSTRACT

Individuals 65 years or older will comprise an estimated 20.0% of the U.S. population by 2030. This study investigated the association between food insecurity and health-related quality of life (HRQoL) among an older adult population (n = 234). HRQoL was measured using Healthy Days, a validated survey tool developed by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention. Food-insecure individuals were more likely to report ≥14 physically unhealthy days (OR = 1.49, 95% CI 0.47–4.78) and ≥14 days with activity limitations (OR = 4.07, 95% CI 0.68–24.1). Although nonsignificant, the findings highlight food insecurity as a potentially important social determinant of health throughout the life course, including at an older age.

KEYWORDS:

• Food insecurity
• healthy days
• HRQoL
• older adults

Acknowledgments

We acknowledge the individuals who participated in this study, study site staff, as well as the students responsible for data collection, including William Baldwin, Mecca Burris, Anneliese Long, Karen Serrano Arce, Jacqueline Sivén, Seiichi Villanova, and Tian Walker.

Conflicts of interest

Authors Dobbins, McGrath, Renda, Cordier and Song are employed by the study sponsor. There are no additional conflicts of interest to report.

Ethical standards disclosure

This study was conducted according to the guidelines laid down in the Declaration of Helsinki and all procedures involving human subjects/patients were approved by the University of South Florida Institutional Review Board (Pro00030567). Written informed consent was obtained from all subjects/patients.

Additional information

Funding

Humana Inc. was the study sponsor; Feeding Tampa Bay provided participant incentives (i.e., $10 grocery gift cards).