FOOD DEPRIVATION IN CHILDHOOD IS LINKED TO OBESITY; KNOW WHY

As energy prices rise and the cost of living goes up, it is estimated that there are 4 million children from poorer households who have limited or uncertain access to healthy food. My current PhD research is examining how this childhood food insecurity affects eating behaviour. Research suggests that food deprivation in childhood leads to obesity.

A 2017 study found that children between the age of eight and ten from homes that do not have easy access to healthy food are five times more likely to be obese compared to those from households that have enough food.

The study, which looked at 50 mothers and their children, found that children in households where food scarcity is a problem ate food when they were not hungry and were more likely to eat five or more snacks per day.

But another recent study conducted with 394 adults in the UK found no difference in the total energy intake of food-insecure and food-secure people. What it did find, though, was that the diet of people without ready access to healthy food was high in carbohydrates, with less fibre and protein than other people in the study.

The time gaps between when food-insecure people ate were also inconsistent when compared to those with ready access to healthy food. This could be due to financial reasons. The people who lacked access to food could not keep regular intervals between meals but instead ate as food became available.

These research findings are concerning because eating high-calorie foods (often high in sugar and fats and classed as unhealthy food items) and skipping meals have been found to be linked with obesity. It suggests that eating practices that result from food insecurity are factors that can lead to obesity.

The emotional toll of a childhood living in poverty may also lead to obesity. A 2018 research review of the factors leading to childhood obesity looked at the role played by family environment.

It suggests that low income, the inability to access or afford nutritious food, and the stress caused by lack of income and food create a negative psychological and emotional environment for children. This family disharmony disrupts homeostasis – the body’s ability to monitor and maintain its internal state.

Other research studies have explored the link between emotional eating and obesity. A study conducted in 2019 with 150 adults explored the relationship between obesity and socioeconomic disadvantage, psychological distress, and emotional eating.

It found that lower socioeconomic status was associated with higher distress and that higher distress was associated with higher levels of emotional eating. In turn, higher emotional eating was associated with higher BMI.

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