Study of Demographic Characteristics Related to Food Insecurity in Bushehr Iran Households with Infants Aged 1-2 years

Introduction: The nutritional dependency of infants on parents put them among the most vulnerable groups affected by food insecurity. The present study aimed to determine demographic characteristics related to food insecurity in Bushehrian households with infants aged 1-2 years. Methods: In a descriptive and analytical cross-sectional study, 400 mothers with infants aged 1-2 years were randomly selected. The food security situation was measured with a 16-point questionnaire of localized Radimer cornell at three levels of the household, the individual and the child, with the internal consistency of food security as 0.89, 0.82 and 0.79, respectively. Results: The rate of food insecurity at household, individual, and child level was 51.5%, 22.3%, and 11.3%, respectively. Among the indicators affecting the food insecurity of Bushehrian households were the higher education of the mother (OR=8.09, CI=2.63-24.83), the higher education of the father (OR=8.93, CI=2.9-26.69), employment of the mother (OR=4.09, CI=2.33-7.19), multi-person household (OR=0.3, CI=0.13-0.7), the mother’s age (OR=1.04, CI=1-1.08), income between 10 to 20 million IRR (OR=4.18, CI=2.65-6.61), and income >20 million IRR (OR=17.44, CI=7.71-39.45). Binary logistic regression analysis of food security-related variables showed that only the father’s job and income have an independent effect on food security. Conclusions: A 2-fold food insecurity at the individual level contrasted with infant’s food insecurity is an indicator of household’s self-sacrifice to prevent infant’s starvation. In the present study, household food security was evaluated quantitatively. Further research in the form of dietary recalls together with clinical trials is recommended to complement the current study.