Working-age adults using food banks in England have significantly poorer health and higher rates of mental health conditions than adults in the general population: A cross-sectional quantitative study

Abstract

Food bank use has risen rapidly in the UK since 2010. The negative health impacts of food insecurity are well-documented, but there is a lack of quantitative research exploring the health of people using food banks, who are most often severely food insecure. To address this gap, this study compares health outcomes between working-age adults using food banks and those in the general population in England, investigating whether adults using food banks are disproportionately affected by poor health, even after accounting for socioeconomic differences. Data from a survey of 598 adults using Trussell Trust food banks in 2016-2017 were merged with data from the Health Survey for England (HSE) from 2016. Outcome variables of interest were: self-rated health, life-limiting health conditions (disability) and self-reported metabolic, cardiovascular, musculoskeletal and mental health conditions. Logistic regression models were used to examine the odds of adults using food banks having health conditions, disability and poor self-rated health compared to the general population. The prevalence rates of poor self-rated health, disability, mental health disorders and musculoskeletal conditions were significantly higher among adults using food banks than the general population (p < .05 for all outcomes). These associations remained after accounting for gender, age, marital status, employment and education. This comparative study highlights the many health disadvantages among adults using food bank compared to the general population. The higher risk of poor self-rated health, disability and mental health conditions was not fully explained by measures of low socioeconomic status. Possible explanations for these findings include: first, that poor health may increase vulnerability to food insecurity, and, in turn, use of food banks; second, that experiences of food insecurity and food bank use may cause declines in health; and third, that food bank use and poor health may be joint outcomes arising from the last decade of austerity in the UK.

Keywords: UK; disability; food bank; food insecurity; mental health disorders; self-rated health.