Prevalence, influencing factors and control of food insecurity: A model in the northwest of Iran

Food insecurity is frequent in both developed and developing countries, affecting from 5% to 25% of the general
population. The aim of this study was to assess food insecurity, its influencing factors and control measures in
the northwest of Iran. A total population of 15,070 (2,911 households) were studied. A short questionnaire was
used for the screening of food insecurity and energy intake in this study. After the screening programme, those
families identified as having food insecurity were recruited for the second part of the study which was a community
trial. We organized small training campaigns (through peer education) for target households. Six months
later, the same techniques were applied again to assess the impact of educational intervention in reducing the rate
of food insecurity. Total prevalence of food insecurity in the study population was 59.3 percent (95% confidence
interval: 57.4-61.3). Logistic regression showed that apart from the mother’s age and smoking status of the head
of the family, there was a significant association between household food insecurity and other variables in the
model (mainly economic factors). The prevalence of food insecurity reduced by 7.3 percent after the intervention
(p>0.10). The high prevalence of food insecurity in this study indicates that there is an urgent need for a close
collaboration between governmental, international and local leadership to identify and implement the key interventional
programmes to overcome this ever increasing health problem. According to our findings, a special attention
should be paid on the economic improvement in the region