Project

Systemic approaches to support food insecure children and families

Code
bof/baf/4y/2024/01/785
Duration
01 January 2024 → 31 December 2025
Funding
Regional and community funding: Special Research Fund
Research disciplines
  • Social sciences
    • Consumer behaviour
  • Medical and health sciences
    • Health promotion and policy
    • Public health nutrition
Keywords
children families health promotion food insecurity low SES
 
Project description

Developing healthy dietary habits is vital for children due to its importance for growth, development, and health. Unfortunately, optimal diets and home environments conducive for healthy eating are less common in low socioeconomic (SES) families. Further, growing rates of poverty means a higher number of families in Flanders are now experiencing food insecurity. Experiencing food insecurity whilst growing up makes it harder for children of low-SES to reach their potential. Studies also show higher risks on non-communicable diseases food-insecure households due to a nutrient-poor diet. Food insecurity is considered a complex health problem. Drivers are multiple, diverse, and dynamic, ranging from personal behaviours to aspects of the physical, economic, sociocultural, and political environments. There is growing consensus to take a systemic approach when trying to understand and solve complex problems such as diet inequalities. However, this systemic approach has not been taken to investigate and support children and families experiencing food insecurity.