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Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health
Published in: Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health 1/2017

01-02-2017 | Original Paper

Food Hardship and Obesity in a Sample of Low-Income Immigrants

Authors: Caitlin E. Caspi, Reginald D. Tucker-Seeley, Gary Adamkiewicz, Christina A. Roberto, Anne M. Stoddard, Glorian C. Sorensen

Published in: Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health | Issue 1/2017

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Abstract

Very little work has examined the relationship between food hardship (having inconsistent financial resources to buy food) and obesity among immigrant groups. A cross-sectional study was conducted in a low-income, multi-racial/ethnic adult sample in greater Boston, MA (n = 828). Modified Poisson regression models estimated the association between food hardship obesity (BMI ≥ 30) among adults reporting food hardship; interactions were tested by place of birth. Body mass index (BMI) was based on anthropometric height and weight. In adjusted models, those experiencing food hardship were more likely to be obese (RR 1.17, CI 1.07, 1.29) than those not experiencing food hardship. Participants from Haiti reporting food hardship were more likely to be obese than those not reporting hardship (RR 1.58, CI 1.23, 2.04); this was not the case among other groups (US born, Puerto Rican, Latin American, Other). The relationship between food hardship and weight may vary among immigrant subgroups.
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Metadata
Title
Food Hardship and Obesity in a Sample of Low-Income Immigrants
Authors
Caitlin E. Caspi
Reginald D. Tucker-Seeley
Gary Adamkiewicz
Christina A. Roberto
Anne M. Stoddard
Glorian C. Sorensen
Publication date
01-02-2017
Publisher
Springer US
Published in
Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health / Issue 1/2017
Print ISSN: 1557-1912
Electronic ISSN: 1557-1920
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-016-0344-z

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