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Heightened Nutritional Vulnerability Among Food-insecure Canadians in 2015 Than 2004 (P04-053-19).

Objectives
Household food insecurity is a persistent public health issue in Canada. Analyses of dietary intake data from the 2004 Canadian Community Health Survey (CCHS) showed heightened nutritional vulnerability among adults and, to a lesser degree, children in food-insecure households. Given the rise in food prices since 2004, people in food-insecure households may now be at heightened nutritional risk. The objective of this study is to determine how nutritional vulnerability associated with household food insecurity has changed between 2004 and 2015.


Methods
Dietary intake was assessed on the 2004 CCHS Nutrition (n = 35,107) and 2015 CCHS Nutrition (n = 20,487) using 24-hour recalls, with household food insecurity assessed using the Household Food Security Survey Module. The National Cancer Institute method was used to estimate usual intakes of nutrients of public health concern (calcium, magnesium, vitamin A, vitamin C, folate, zinc, potassium) for food-insecure participants, by survey year, considering children 1-8 years (yr) and 9-18 yr and male and female adults, 19-64 yr. Prevalence of nutrient inadequacy was assessed using the EAR cut-point approach. Differences in usual intake and prevalence of inadequacy between surveys were assessed using t-tests. Weighted bootstrap technique was utilised to generate variance estimates.


Results
In 2004 and 2015, 8.4% of individuals lived in moderately or severely food-insecure households. Mean usual intakes were lower and prevalence of nutrient inadequacy were higher across groups in 2015 than 2004, but not all differences were statistically significant. Differences in mean potassium and vitamin C intakes were significant in all groups; differences for folate and magnesium were significant in all groups except older children. Calcium was significantly lower in all groups except adult males, and vitamin A was significantly lower in all groups except young children. Young children had significantly lower intakes of zinc. Older children and male adults had significantly higher prevalence of inadequacy for vitamin C.


Conclusions
Nutritional vulnerability associated with household food insecurity has worsened over time in Canada and remains an area in need of intervention.


Funding Sources
Ontario Graduate Scholarship, Canada Graduate Scholarship-Masters, Canadian Institutes of Health Research.