Abstract
Background
Aging populations in the United States exhibit high rates of food insecurity and chronic
illness. Few studies have explored the neighborhood-level drivers of food insecurity
among such populations, and how they intersect with experiences of aging.
Objective
The aim of this study was to explore how aging women experience food insecurity in
the United States, and the neighborhood-level factors that influence these experiences.
Design
Semistructured qualitative interviews were conducted to elicit participants’ perceptions
of how their neighborhood influenced their experiences with food security and aging.
Participants/setting
Thirty-eight food-insecure women aged 50 years and older were purposively sampled
from the Northern California, Georgia, and North Carolina sites of the Women’s Interagency
Human Immunodeficiency Virus Study. Interviews were conducted between November 2017
and July 2018 at the three Women’s Interagency Human Immunodeficiency Virus Study
sites.
Statistical analysis
Three researchers thematically analyzed the data using an inductive–deductive approach.
Results
Participants described neighborhood-level drivers of food insecurity that centered
around three themes: accessibility of food from traditional food stores, the role
of food aid institutions, and the intersection of aging with the food environment.
Participants explained that food insecurity was related to limited access to food
stores largely due to long distances and poor public transportation in Georgia and
North Carolina, and high food prices in Northern California. Most participants described
being dependent on food aid programs, but found this difficult due to poor quality
food and long wait times. Aging-related issues emerged as a cross-cutting theme, with
fatigue, poor strength, and chronic illness amplifying barriers to accessing food.
Conclusions
Findings from this study reveal the structural barriers that aging women face in accessing
healthy food within their neighborhoods, and how experiences with aging and chronic
illnesses exacerbate these barriers. Although future programs should address common
neighborhood-level barriers such as the accessibility and affordability of healthy
foods, they should also be tailored to aging women and the local context.
Keywords
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Biography
J. A. Shieh is a graduate student, Institute for Global Health Sciences, University of California, San Francisco.
Biography
A. M. Leddy is a postdoctoral scholar, Division of Prevention Science, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco.
Biography
H. J. Whittle is a researcher, Centre for Psychiatry, Wolfson Institute of Preventive Medicine, Barts and the London School of Medicine and Dentistry, Queen Mary University of London, London, United Kingdom.
Biography
I. Ofotokun is a professor, School of Medicine, Emory University and Grady Healthcare System, Atlanta, GA.
Biography
A. A. Adimora is a professor, School of Medicine, and Gillings School of Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Biography
P. C. Tien is a professor, Division of HIV, ID, and Global Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco.
Biography
S. D. Weiser is a professor, Division of HIV, ID, and Global Medicine, Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco.
Article info
Publication history
Published online: February 03, 2021
Accepted:
December 21,
2020
Received:
July 27,
2020
Footnotes
STATEMENT OF POTENTIAL CONFLICT OF INTEREST No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.
FUNDING/SUPPORT This work was supported by the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (grant No. K24AI134326).
Identification
Copyright
© 2021 by the Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics.
