Prevalence and Severity of Food Insecurity Before and During the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic Among Adults and Youth in Australia, Canada, Chile, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

BACKGROUND: Disruptions from the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic potentially exacerbated food insecurity among adults and youth. OBJECTIVES: The objective was to examine changes in the prevalence and severity of food insecurity among adults and youth from before (2019) to during (2020) the pandemic in multiple countries. METHODS: Repeated cross-sectional data were collected among adults aged 18-100 y (n = 63,278) in 5 countries in November to December in 2018-2020 and among youth aged 10-17 y (n = 23,107) in 6 countries in November to December in 2019 and 2020. Food insecurity in the past year was captured using the Household Food Security Survey Module and the Child Food Insecurity Experiences Scale. Changes in the prevalence and severity of food insecurity were examined using logistic and generalized logit regression models, respectively. Models included age, gender, racial-ethnic identity, and other sociodemographic characteristics associated with food insecurity to adjust for possible sample differences across waves. Models were weighted to reflect each country's population. RESULTS: Adults [adjusted OR (AOR): 1.15; 95% CI: 1.02, 1.31] and youth (AOR: 1.43; 95% CI: 1.19, 1.71) in Mexico were more likely to live in food-insecure households in 2020 compared to 2019. Adults in Australia (AOR: 0.81; 95% CI: 0.72, 0.92) and Canada (AOR: 0.87; 95% CI: 0.77, 0.99) were less likely to live in food-insecure households in 2020. Trends in severity aligned with changes in prevalence, with some exceptions. Youth in Australia (AOR: 2.24; 95% CI: 1.65, 3.02) and the United States (AOR: 1.39; 95% CI: 1.04, 1.86) were more likely to have many compared with no experiences of food insecurity in 2020 compared to 2019. There was no evidence of change among adults and youth in the remaining countries. CONCLUSIONS: Except for Mexico, few changes in food insecurity among adults and youth were observed from before to during the COVID-19 pandemic. Action is needed to support households at risk of food insecurity.

Self-reported Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Cannabis Use in Canada and the United States.

The current study examined the self-reported impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on cannabis consumption and behaviors among past 12-month cannabis consumers in Canada and the U.S. across different cannabis laws. Cross-sectional survey data were collected in 2020 from respondents recruited through online commercial panels, aged 16-65, who consumed cannabis in the past 12 months (n = 13,689). Weighted multinomial logistic regression models examined differences between jurisdictions for five outcomes: 1) cannabis consumption; 2) use of product types; 3) use of sources to obtain cannabis; 4) legality of source used; and 5) access to cannabis. Approximately one third of cannabis consumers reported changes to their consumption during the pandemic. Edibles (23% - 31%) and dried flower (21% - 30%) were the two most common products that respondents reported they were "more likely" to use during the pandemic. Most consumers reported "no difference" to changes in sourcing cannabis. Compared to consumers in U.S. recreational states, consumers in U.S. medical (AOR = 1.27, 95% CI: 1.07, 1.50) and illegal states (AOR = 1.22, CI: 1.00,1.48) had higher odds of reporting it was "harder" to access cannabis, and consumers in Canada had lower odds (AOR = 0.73, CI: 0.63,0.84). Future research should examine whether these changes remain after public health restrictions due to the pandemic are removed.

Household Food Insecurity in Middle- and High-Income Countries Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Objectives The impact of the pandemic on the prevalence of food insecurity is unclear given the potentially contradictory effects of shocks such as lockdowns versus stabilizers such as income supplements. We examined changes in the prevalence of household food insecurity in five countries from before (2019) to during the pandemic (2020). Methods Data were drawn from cross-sectional surveys conducted in Australia, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States (US) in November/December of 2018,2019, and 2020. Adults aged 18–99 years were surveyed annually (2018: n = 22,731,2019: n = 19,274,2020: n = 21,323). Household food insecurity in the past 12 months was assessed using the Household Food Security Survey Module. Weighted logit models examined changes in the prevalence of living in households affected by food insecurity from 2019 to 2020, adjusting for the prevalence in 2018 and demographic characteristics. Weighted generalized logit models examined changes in the severity of food insecurity. Results Adults in Mexico had a higher probability of living in food-insecure households in 2020 compared to 2019 (β = 0.14, p = 0.02). In contrast, decreases in the probability of living in food-insecure households in 2020 compared to 2019 were observed in Australia (β = −0.21, p < .001) and Canada (β = −0.14, p = 0.03). In the UK and the US, no important changes in the prevalence of food insecurity were observed (UK: β = −0.11, p = 0.11, US: β = 0.05, p = 0.42). Changes in the severity of food insecurity within countries are also evident. Conclusions Changes in the prevalence of household food insecurity during the pandemic appear to differ across countries. Further analyses will contextualize these differences in relation to varied policy responses to the pandemic, as well as changes in prevalence among subgroups such as those with low incomes. Funding Sources A. Pepetone received a stipend from a Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR)/Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council/Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Healthy Cities Research Training Platform. Funding for the International Food Policy Study was provided by a CIHR Project Grant, with additional support from Health Canada, the Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC), and a CIHR-PHAC Applied Public Health Chair held by D. Hammond.

Self-Reported Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Diet-Related Behaviors and Food Security in 5 Countries: Results from the International Food Policy Study 2020.

BACKGROUND: The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has impacted many aspects of daily life, including dietary intake; however, few studies have reported its impacts on dietary behaviors and food security across multiple countries. OBJECTIVES: We examined self-reported impacts of COVID-19 on food behaviors, food security, and overall diet healthfulness in 5 countries. METHODS: Adults aged 18-100 years (n = 20,554) in Australia, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, and the United States completed an online survey in November and December 2020 as part of the International Food Policy Study, an annual, repeat cross-sectional survey. Survey measures assessed perceived impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on eating food prepared away from home, having food delivered from a restaurant, and buying groceries online, as well as perceived food security and overall diet healthfulness. Regression models examined associations between each outcome and sociodemographic correlates. RESULTS: Across all countries, 62% of respondents reported eating less food prepared away from home due to the pandemic, while 11% reported eating more. Some participants reported having less food delivered from a restaurant (35%) and buying fewer groceries online (17%), while other respondents reported more of each (19% and 25%, respectively). An average of 39% reported impacts on their food security, and 27% reported healthful changes to their overall diet. The largest changes for all outcomes were observed in Mexico. Participants who were younger, ethnic minorities, or had lower income adequacy tended to be more likely to report food-related changes in either direction; however, these relationships were often less pronounced among respondents in Mexico. CONCLUSIONS: Respondents reported important changes in how they sourced their food during the pandemic, with trends suggesting shifts towards less food prepared away from home and more healthful diets overall. However, changes in diet and food behaviors occurred in both healthful and less healthful directions, suggesting that dietary responses to the pandemic were highly variable.

Food insecurity, food skills, health literacy and food preparation activities among young Canadian adults: a cross-sectional analysis.

OBJECTIVE: To assess associations between household food security status and indicators of food skills, health literacy and home meal preparation, among young Canadian adults. DESIGN: Cross-sectional data were analysed using logistic regression and general linear models to assess associations between food security status and food skills, health literacy and the proportion of meals prepared at home, by gender. SETTING: Participants recruited from five Canadian cities (Vancouver (BC), Edmonton (AB), Toronto (ON), Montreal (QB) and Halifax (NS)) completed an online survey. PARTICIPANTS: 1389 men and 1340 women aged 16-30 years. RESULTS: Self-reported food skills were not associated with food security status (P > 0·05) among men or women. Compared to those with high health literacy (based on interpretation of a nutrition label), higher odds of food insecurity were observed among men (adjusted OR (AOR): 2·58, 95 % CI 1·74, 3·82 and 1·56, 95 % CI 1·07, 2·28) and women (AOR: 2·34, 95 % CI 1·48, 3·70 and 1·92, 95 % CI 1·34, 2·74) with lower health literacy. Women in food-insecure households reported preparing a lower proportion of breakfasts (ß = -0·051, 95 % CI -0·085, -0·017), lunches (ß = -0·062, 95 % CI -0·098, -0·026) and total meals at home (ß = -0·041, 95 % CI -0·065, -0·016). Men and women identifying as Black or Indigenous, reporting financial difficulty and with lower levels of education had heightened odds of experiencing food insecurity. CONCLUSIONS: Findings are consistent with other studies underscoring the financial precarity, rather than lack of food skills, associated with food insecurity. This precarity may reduce opportunities to apply health literacy and undertake meal preparation.