Food pantry use and intake of foods with added sugar, sugar sweetened beverages and fruits and vegetables among low-income parents in a large Midwestern city

ABSTRACT

This study examined consumption of fruits and vegetables, foods with added sugar and sugar-sweetened beverages (SSBs) based on the frequency of food pantry use. A repeated cross-sectional study was conducted among food pantry clients (n = 563) in Omaha, Nebraska. Daily intake of individual dietary items was combined into each final dietary outcome measure and dichotomized: <1 time per day or ≥ times per day. Descriptive statistics were produced, and a logistic regression model was fit. More frequent pantry use was associated with 2.1 times greater odds of consuming foods with added sugar one or more times per day compared to non-pantry users.

KEYWORDS:

• Food insecurity
• food pantry
• fruit and vegetable consumption
• foods with added sugar