Hunger and Obesity : Understanding a Food Insecurity Paradigm: Workshop Summary

At some point during 2009, more than 17 million households in the United States had difficulty providing enough food for all their members because of a lack of resources.

In more than one-third of these households, the food intake of some household members was reduced and normal eating patterns were disrupted due to limited resources.

The Workshop on Understanding the Relationship Between Food Insecurity and Obesity was held to explore the biological, economic, psychosocial, and other factors that may influence the relationship between food insecurity, overweight, and obesity in the United States. Hunger and Obesity examines current concepts and research findings in the field.

The report identifies information gaps, proposes alternative approaches to analyzing data, recommends new data that should be collected, and addresses the limitations of the available research. Table of ContentsFront MatterOverview1 Goals of the Workshop2 Setting the Stage for the Coexistence of Food Insecurity andObesity3 Socioeconomic Disparities: Food Insecurity and Obesity4 Sentinel Populations5 Socioecological Perspectives: The Individual Level6 Socioecological Perspectives: The Family and Household Level7 Socioecological Perspectives: The Environmental Level8 Socioecological Perspectives: The Institutional Level9 Putting the Levels Together10 Research Applications11 Research Gaps from a Disciplinary Perspective12 Research Methods and Measures13 Key Elements, Priorities, and Next StepsAppendix A: Workshop AgendaAppendix B: Planning Committee Biographical SketchesAppendix C: Speaker Biographical SketchesAppendix D: Workshop ParticipantsAppendix E: AcronymsAppendix F: Roundtable DiscussionsAppendix G: Public CommentsAppendix H: Brief List of Recurring Workshop Discussions