Race and Sex Differences in the Association between Food Insecurity and Type 2 Diabetes.

OBJECTIVE: To examine whether the relationship between food insecurity (FI) and type 2 diabetes (T2D) varies by race/ethnicity and sex.

METHODS: We analyzed data from low-income adults participating in the 2009 and 2011 waves of the California Health Interview Survey (CHIS) (N=22,596). We used logistic regression models to estimate the sex and race-specific associations between FI and T2D.

RESULTS: We observed positive associations between low food security and T2D for White men (AOR: 1.9, 95% CI: 1.2, 3.2), and between very low food security and T2D for White women (AOR: 1.6 95% CI: 1.1, 2.5). In Latinas, we observed positive associations between both low food security (AOR: 1.7, 95% CI: 1.3, 2.2) and very low food security (AOR: 1.8, 95% CI: 1.2, 2.6) and T2D. We did not observe any associations between FI and T2D in Latino men, or African American women and men.

CONCLUSION: The relationship between FI and T2D may be moderated by race and sex. For African Americans and Latino men, other distal factors may modify the effect of FI on rates of T2D.