Food Insecurity among Veterans: Findings from the Health and Retirement Study.

OBJECTIVES: We examined the prevalence of food insecurity in an older population, specifically assessing factors associated with food insecurity among U.S. military Veterans.

METHODS: Data from the 2012 wave of the Health and Retirement Study and the 2013 Health Care and Nutrition Mail Survey of 2560 male participants (1254 Veterans) were used to estimate the prevalence of food insecurity and to identify significant predictors of food insecurity among male Veterans.

RESULTS: Among male Veterans, 6.4% reported food insecurity, compared to 11.9% of male non-veterans (p < 0.01). Younger age, difficulty with daily activities and depression were significantly associated with increased odds of food insecurity among male Veterans aged 50 to 64. In male Veterans age 65 years and older, current smoking, a psychiatric diagnosis and depression were significantly associated with increased odds of food insecurity.

CONCLUSIONS: This study identified significant factors that may be used to target interventions to improve nutritional status among older male Veterans.