Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2020 Jun;9(2):107-118.
doi: 10.1007/s13668-020-00309-1.

Food Insecurity and Psychological Distress: a Review of the Recent Literature

Candice A Myers  1
Affiliations
Review

Food Insecurity and Psychological Distress: a Review of the Recent Literature

Candice A Myers. Curr Nutr Rep. 2020 Jun.

Abstract

Purpose of review: Food insecurity is the lack of sufficient food in quantity and/or quality. Psychological distress includes mental health issues such as depression and anxiety. This review provides current information on research examining the association between food insecurity and psychological distress.

Recent findings: Among studies published in the previous 5 years, food insecurity was significantly and positively associated with multiple indicators of psychological distress. This included cross-sectional and longitudinal studies, as well as primary data collection and secondary data analyses, from countries of varying income levels. Articles also provided evidence within various populations, such as adults of all ages, college students, those living with chronic disease, and parents. Food insecurity and psychological distress are interconnected health issues. Future research should consider a number of important gaps in the literature, with the most important being the development of interventions to improve food insecurity and psychological health concurrently.

Keywords: Food insecurity; Mental health; Psychological distress; Psychological health; Psychological well-being.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflict of Interest

Candice A. Myers declares she has no conflict of interest.

References

    1. FAO. Trade Reforms and Food Security: Conceptualizing the Linkages. Rome: 2003.
    1. FAO, IFAD, UNICEF, WFP, WHO. The State of Food Security and Nutrition in the World 2019: Safeguarding against economic slowdowns and downturns. Rome2019.
    1. Coleman-Jensen A, Rabbitt MP, Gregory CA, Singh A. Household Food Security in the United States in 2018: United States Department of Agriculture2019.
    1. Dietz WH. Does hunger cause obesity? Pediatrics. 1995;95(5):766–7. - PubMed
    1. Nettle D, Andrews C, Bateson M. Food insecurity as a driver of obesity in humans: The insurance hypothesis. Behavioral and Brain Sciences. 2016;40:1–53. doi: 10.1017/S0140525X16000947. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types

LinkOut - more resources