Peer-reviewed article
O30 Food Insecurity Rates Among WIC Participants During COVID-19
·
Summary
Written by AI, not yet AICS's view · claude-haiku-4-5-20251001This study examined food insecurity among low-income families with young children in California's WIC program during the COVID-19 pandemic. Nearly half of the 358 participants were food insecure, with Spanish-speaking families and older participants experiencing greater difficulties accessing food. Key barriers included fear of leaving homes, empty store shelves, job loss, and increased childcare demands. The research suggests that teaching cooking skills to WIC parents may help improve food security outcomes.
Key points
- 47.5% of WIC participants were food insecure (35.5% low food security, 12.1% very low food security)
- Spanish-speaking participants reported significantly more difficulty accessing food (44.1%) compared to English speakers (31.4%)
- Older participants (30+ years) were more food insecure (51.7%) than younger participants aged 18-29 (38.8%)
- Major barriers to food access included fear of leaving home, lack of available food at stores, employment loss, and increased childcare responsibilities
- Study conducted with WIC clients in Ventura County, California using online nutrition education program during the pandemic
Limitations
The study is descriptive and cross-sectional without a comparison group, so it cannot establish causation or determine whether the online cooking program itself improved food security. The sample is limited to WIC participants in one county in California, which may not represent broader populations or regions.
Abstract
Background The WIC program serves low-income, pregnant and breastfeeding women and children under 5. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased food insecurity and reduced access to healthy foods essential during critical periods of growth and development, thereby increasing health disparities. Objective To determine the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on food insecurity and food access in an online/virtual nutrition education program conducted in partnership with the WIC Program in Ventura County, CA. Study Design, Setting, Participants Mixed methods were used in a pilot study with adult English- and Spanish-speaking WIC clients (n = 358) utilizing the Family Kitchen online cooking education program to meet their WIC nutrition education requirements. Surveys were self-administered before and after watching an online cooking education video. Measurable Outcome/Analysis Descriptive statistics and bivariate relationships including Chi-square analyses were conducted to determine the association between demographic variables (e.g,. age, education, race/ethnicity, income, and language spoken at home) with rates of food insecurity measured using the USDA six-item short-form food security (FS) scale and a question about the impact of COVID-19 on food access. Responses regarding food access were coded for themes and subthemes using thematic analysis. Results A total of 47.5% of study participants were food insecure (35.5% low FS, 12.1% very low FS) and 36.1% reported difficulty with food access. Older study participants (30+ years) were more food insecure than younger participants (18-29 y) - 51.7% versus 38.8% (P = .05). Spanish-speakers experienced greater difficulty accessing food during the pandemic than English-speakers - 44.1% versus 31.4% (P = 0.02). Major themes identified for these difficulties included fear of leaving the house, lack of food available at local stores, loss of employment, and increased childcare responsibilities. Conclusions Low-income, Spanish-speakers are particularly at-risk for higher rates of food insecurity and more difficulty accessing food, due in part to minimal resources and fragile work-life relationships. Increasing cooking skills among WIC parents may support better outcomes. and merits further research. Funding Share our Strength/No Kid Hungry.
Findings the Hub has extracted
Each claim below is labelled by its type of design and links back to this report.
- Intervention
- Online/virtual nutrition education cooking program (Family Kitchen) delivered to WIC participants
- Population
- 358 WIC clients (low-income pregnant and breastfeeding women and families with children under 5) in Ventura County, California, English- and Spanish-speakers
Key finding
47.5% of participants experienced food insecurity at baseline