Food (in)security and home availability of food for the Northern region of the State of Tocantins residents

Abstract

Introduction: Studies that review the factors associated with food and nutritional (in)security are essential for the planning of public health promotion actions and policies. Objective: To assess household food availability according to the NOVA classification and its association with the situation of families food (in)security Methods: Cross-sectional study conducted with 199 families living in the Bico do Papagaio micro-region, in the State of Tocantins. Families socioeconomic and demographic data were reviewed. The situation of food insecurity was assessed using the Brazilian Food Insecurity Scale. To calculate the daily energy availability at home, the methodology suggested by FAO was followed, grouping according to the degree of food processing. The chi-square test and the linear trend test were used to verify association among the variables. Results: In total, 69.9% of the population had some degree of food insecurity, and 43.2% did not have sufficient food calories availability. It was observed that, as the degree of food insecurity increased, the caloric value available in the household got reduced, with the greatest caloric contribution coming from fresh and/or minimally processed foods, followed by culinary ingredients, ultra-processed foods and processed foods, regardless of the level of food insecurity (p<0.05). Conclusion: The importance of evaluating different determinants of food (in)security in this region is emphasized, in addition to the importance of adopting public policies that improve the families’ living conditions and help implementing strategies that encourage production and consumption of regional foods.