Such individuals are also more likely to experience impaired psychosocial development and be suspended from school, while younger children are more likely to have seen a psychologist and have lower academic scores than their well-fed counterparts.

Previous research has indicated that insufficient amounts of food may lead to depression, but the extent of the problem among adolescents has received little attention to date.

Dr Katherine Alaimo and colleagues from the University of Michigan followed two arms of investigation using a cohort of 6- to 16-year-olds who had responded to a national survey. One study examined the prevalence of depression and other disorders among groups of young people and related the results to data regarding amounts of available food in the subjects’ homes. The other looked at links between food insufficiency and cognitive, academic and psychosocial development.

The researchers found that low grade depression, suicidal feelings, inability to get on with peers and poor experience of school were all more common among children living in homes where food was often scarce.

One-fifth of such subjects had attempted suicide.

The results persisted even after controlling for factors such as parental education and employment status, exposure to smoking, poverty levels and ethnicity.

Dr Alaimo commented that the levels of food deprivation that are common in the US may lead to developmental problems in a huge number of children.

She said, “Food is fundamental and food insufficiency, like other material deprivations such as homelessness, is stressful for both parents and children and can cause depression, anxiety and other emotional problems.

“Unlike many other factors that contribute to psychological, developmental or social problems, this one is fairly straightforward to address. We need public policies that ensure that families have access to enough nutritionally adequate and safe food for an active healthy life,” she added.

References: Alaimo et al, Journal of Nutrition 2002;132:719-725. Alaimo et al, Pediatrics 2001;108:44-53
© Health Media Ltd 2002
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