Nutrition insecurity from inflation prevalent among US’ older age demographics, study reveals
27 Sep 2022 --- A new study from the University of Michigan in the US has revealed that rising inflation is affecting the nutrition security of almost three-quarters of people over the age 50, despite efforts to provide funding to some of the regions hardest hit by the food security crisis.
Ursula von der Leyen, president of the European Commission (EC), has allocated €600 million (US$578 million) to address the growing global food and nutrition security crisis in some of the most vulnerable countries in the Caribbean, the Pacific and Africa.
At the same time, experts are calling attention to the malnutrition of one of the most vulnerable groups in what is considered one of the wealthiest countries in the world.
“Increasing food costs are affecting everyone, but older adults that rate their physical or mental health as fair or poor, along with those individuals with lower income and lower education levels, are the most likely to be affected by increasing costs,” Preeti Malani, director of the National Poll on Healthy Aging, tells NutritionInsight.
“For our most vulnerable older adults, the huge increase we’ve seen in food costs could make a bad situation worse.”
Many participants in the US-based study said they had reduced both the quality and quantity of their food intake due to rising prices.
Concerns for the underprivileged
The study found that the rising cost of food has affected certain groups of older adults harder than others.
Specifically, food insecurity affects those in lower-income households, those who rate their mental health as fair or poor and those with lower levels of education. The study surveyed 2,163 adults between the ages of 50 and 80.
Among those who answered the studies poll, 58% of participants who rated their mental health as fair or poor, 46% of participants who rated their physical health as fair or poor, 56% of participants with household incomes below US$30,000 and 48% of those with high school education or less reported eating less food and less healthy foods. Thirty-eight percent said they do not eat enough fruit and vegetables.
Moreover, up to 33% said they do not get enough vitamins and minerals, and 37% of those with incomes under US$30,000 said they were overweight, while 13% said they were underweight.
Furthermore, many respondents reported reducing the quality and quantity of their food due to rising costs and limited resources.
Keeping it in perspective
The EC has committed US$5.3 billion to creating sustainable food systems in some of the most vulnerable countries and regions.
Though these issues do not compare with what people are suffering in hard-hit areas around the world, experts believe this may be a foreshadowing of what is to come.
“Anything – war, drought, heavy rains – that negatively affects the supply of food is likely to create further increases in cost,” says Malani.
“As the White House convenes its Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health this week, these new findings suggest a need for better support of the food needs of adults over 50.”
Acknowledging the problem
According to President Leyen, the EC’s allocated funds will bring the total EU contribution to critical parts of Africa, the Caribbean and areas in the Pacific to €7.7 billion (US$7.4 billion) by 2024. The division of these funds is €2.2 billion (US$2.1 billion) for immediate humanitarian needs and €5.5 billion (US$5.3 billion) for investment in sustainable food systems.
For the US to address its current and rising food and nutrition security problems, Malani states that the country will first need to acknowledge it.
“We hope these results help bring attention to this common and growing problem,” Malani underscores. “We don’t always think about food insecurity as a major health risk for older adults, but difficulty buying or obtaining food is a risk to overall well-being.”
“In the US, there are government-sponsored food assistance programs that can help older adults,” she adds. “There are also resources like food pantries and Meals on Wheels that can help fill in some of the needs.”
By William Bradford Nichols
