Factors Related to the High Rates of Food Insecurity among Diverse, Urban College Freshmen.

BACKGROUND: Food insecurity is a persistent public health concern; however, few studies have examined the factors related to food insecurity among college students, particularly college freshmen living in dormitories.

OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to examine the prevalence of food insecurity and associations with health outcomes among college freshmen.

DESIGN: A diverse sample of freshmen (n=209) attending a large southwestern university and living in campus residence halls completed online surveys. Anthropometrics were measured by trained staff.

STATISTICAL ANALYSES: Using mixed logistic regression, associations were examined between food insecurity and health outcomes, adjusting for sociodemographic characteristics and clustering of students within residence halls.

RESULTS: Food insecurity was prevalent, with 32% reporting inconsistent access to food in the past month and 37% in the past 3 months. Food-insecure freshmen had higher odds of depression (odds ratio=2.97; 95% CI 1.58 to 5.60) compared to food-secure students. Food-insecure freshmen had significantly lower odds of eating breakfast, consuming home-cooked meals, perceiving their off-campus eating habits to be healthy, and receiving food from parents (P<0.05).

CONCLUSIONS: Interventions are needed to support students struggling with food insecurity, as it is related to health outcomes.