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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
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The 130th Annual Meeting of APHA |
Betty Greer, PhD, RD and Richard L. Poling, PhD. Agricultural Extension Service, University of Tennessee, 119 Morgan Hall, 2621 Morgan Circle, Knoxville, TN 37996-4501, 865.974.7402, bgreer@utk.edu
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between food insecurity and participation in the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program (EFNEP). Subjects consisted of an intervention group and a comparison group. The intervention group was enrolled in the EFNEP program and had completed an average of 10 nutrition education lessons. The subjects in the comparison group were not enrolled but were eligible for the EFNEP program or were enrolled but had completed no more than one lesson. Food security status was determined by responses to the 18-item household food security questionnaire. The data were collected through interviews by EFNEP program assistants trained in interview techniques. Three hundred and thirty-two participants in the intervention group and 245 subjects in the comparison group completed interviews. Data were analyzed using SAS statistical software. Descriptive statistics were calculated including frequencies, measures of central tendency and measures of distribution for each variable in the study. To determine which variables were associated with food security status, a logistic regression model was constructed with food security as the dependent variable. The independent variables entered into the equation were county type (rural or urban), race, age, educational level, participation in food programs, health status, number of children, marital status, gender and income. Results showed that those who had not completed EFNEP lessons were 1.9 times more likely to be food insecure than those subjects who had completed EFNEP lessons. Divorced and separated households were two times more likely to be food insecure compared to those who are married.
Learning Objectives:
Keywords: Nutrition, Food Security
Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: University of Tennessee Agricultural Extension Service
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.