0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14

Pork* Chicken Fish** Salted Fish*

Canned Fish

Hot Dog Egg

Food Secure

Food Insecure

ABSTRACTObjectiveTo examine the association of food security indicators and nutritional health of children aged 5-10 years in low-income communities in Trinidad and Tobago and St. Kitts and Nevis.

MethodsCross-sectional survey of children aged 5-10 years selected from 8 government primary schools in Trinidad and Tobago and 7 government primary schools in St. Kitts and Nevis (n=485). Height and weight were measured for children at school and household food security, children intake and food frequency were collected with the children’s caregivers during a home interview.

ResultsA total of 43% of the children in Trinidad and Tobago and 51% of the children in the St. Kitts and Nevis sample live in food insecure households. The difference of children’s micronutrient and food intake in food secure and food insecure groups was not evident. However, protein and fat intakes were significantly higher in the food secure group. Mean calcium intakes for both groups were considerably lower than the recommendation. Food secure households were more likely to purchase more meats, which might explain their higher intake of protein. Overweight and obesity were not linked to food security. Despite the high rates of food insecurity and poor intakes of some food groups, there is no evidence of poor growth in this study population.

Conclusion In Trinidad and Tobago and St. Kitts and Nevis, food insecurity was linked to a significantly lower intake of protein and fat. The prevalence of overweight and obesity in children is not explained by living in food insecure households.

INTRODUCTIONFood insecurity is often associated with decreased nutrient intake and related to overweight in different ways in different settings. Prevalence of obesity in the Caribbean is increasing and contributing to non-communicable chronic disease.

METHODS Subjects are children aged 5-10 years who were recruited from 8 schools in low-income areas of Trinidad and Tobago and 7 rural schools in St. Kitts and Nevis. Data Collection Activities

- Children’s height and weight were collected at the schools;

- Caregivers were visited at their homes by trained interviewers to complete questionnaire on health and dietary intake, nutritional status and household income and expenditures;

- Caregivers’ height, weight, and waist circumference measures were also collected during the home visit.

Children- Mean age 7.5±1 (48.4% girls) - Mean BMI-for-age Z-score 0.08±1.40

Caregivers- Mean age of caregivers. 35.8±9.9 (93.5% women) - Mean BMI 29.5±66

RESULTS

Table 1: Average nutrient intake of children by food security status

Table 2: Average daily number of servings of children’s food intake using Caribbean Food Groups by food security status

Serving sizes were calculated based on Canada's Food Guide

Figure 1: Percentage of children not consuming any legumes and nuts, milk and dairy products, fruits or vegetables, by country and food security status of the day of the interview

(TT= Trinidad and Tobago, SK= St. Kitts and Nevis) (FS= food secure group, FIS= food insecure group)

Table3: Weight for height of children by food security status 1

1Each index in terms of the number of standard deviations (SD) units from the median

of the WHO international reference population. Comparisons were made using Chi square where cell counts >5 and Fisher’s exact test for cell counts ≤ 5.

Figure 2: Preliminary findings on household purchasing differences of selected types of meat in food secure and food insecure settings in Trinidad

*, ** indicates significance at the 95%, and 99% level, respectively.

The Consumer Price Index (2010) was used to estimate quantities purchased from total money spent on each item during the last 30 days, units are in kilograms.

Analysis of family size comparing food secure and food insecure households was not different.

CONCLUSION - There are no differences in overweight or

obesity by food security status.

- Differences in intake between food secure and food insecure were small: lower intake of protein and fat.

- Both groups consumed less than the recommended servings of legumes and nuts, milk and dairy products, fruits and vegetables.

References 1. Lovendal C R, Jakobsen K T, Jacque A. Food prices and food security in

Trinidad and Tobago. Agricultural and Development Economics Division of the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. ESA Working Paper No. 07-27 . Sep, 2007.

2. The growing burden of non-communicable diseases in the Eastern Caribbean. Human Development Unit Caribbean Country Management Unit Latin America and the Caribbean Region. 2011; 12-75.

FOOD SECURITY, NUTRIENT INTAKE ANDGROWTH IN TWO CARIBBEAN SETTINGS

W. Mumena, L. Johnson-Down, K. Gray-DonaldSchool of Dietetics and Human Nutrition, McGill University, Montreal, Canada

*Significant at the 95% level

Nutrient Intake Food Secure (n=256) Food Insecure (n=219)

Energy (kcal)

Carbohydrate (g)

Protein (g)*

Fat (g)*

Total Sugar (g)

Calcium (mg)

Iron (mg)

Zinc (mg)

Vitamin C (mg)

1982±792

284±125

68±33.4

66±34.5

100±68

700±435

14.8±11.9

8.3±4.6

175±240

1879±663

277±109

62±29

60±31

98±66

658±377

14±8.2

8.3±4.9

162±162

Food Intake

Staples

Meats

Legumes and Nuts

Milk and Dairy Products

Fruits

Vegetables

Food Secure (n=256)

6.7 ± 3.9

1.6 ± 1.5

0.5 ± 1

0.8 ± 0.9

1.2 ± 1.9

0.8 ± 1.2

Food Insecure (n=219)

6.5 ± 3.6

1.5 ± 1.3

0.7 ± 1.5

0.8 ± 1

1.1 ± 2.1

0.7 ± 0.1

Food Secure(n=257), n (%)

Food Insecure (n=220), n (%)

p

All children (n=477), n (%)

Severe Thinness

%BMI/Age

< -3SD

2 (0.78)

2 (0.91)

0.99

4 (0.84)

Thinness %BMI/Age

< -2SD

10 (3.89)

11 (5.00)

0.56

21 (4.40)

Overweight%BMI/Age

> +1SD

68 (26.5)

43 (19.6)

0.07

111 (23.3)

Obesity%BMI/Age

> +2SD

30 (11.7)

18 (8.18)

0.21

48 (10.1)

ACKNOWLEDGMENT

This work was carried out with the aid of a grant from the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), Ottawa, Canada, www.idrc.ca, and with financial support from the Government of Canada, provided through Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development Canada (DFATD), www.international.gc.ca

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Legumes and Nuts Milk and Dairy Products Fruits Vegetables

TT FS

TT FIS

SK FS

SK FIS