Prevalence and correlates of food insecurity among U.S. college students: a multi-institutional study

BMC Public Health

Table 3 Health and academic variables by food security status among first-year college students at risk of weight gain in the United States (n = 855), 2016

	All Students (n = 855)	Food-Secure (n = 692 [81%])	Food-Insecure (n = 163 [19%])	P-value^a Insecure vs. Secure
Waist Circumference (cm), Mean ± SD	76.7 ± 5.9	79.1 ± 7.4	79.9 ± 13.2	0.471
BMI (kg/m²)
Mean ± SD	24.70 ± 5.23	24.5 ± 5.0	25.2 ± 5.8	0.112
Overweight/obese (BMI ≥ 25), n (%)	310 (37.1)	247 (36.5)	63 (39.9)	0.423
Perceived Stress
Mean ± SD	27.0 ± 5.9	26.2 ± 5.8	30.2 ± 5.7	< 0.001
High stress^b, n (%)	457 (54.2)	342 (49.8)	114 (73.7)
Sleep Quality
Mean ± SD	5.8 ± 2.5	5.4 ± 2.4	6.8 ± 2.8	< 0.001
Poor sleep quality^c, n (%)	542 (64.7)	416 (61.1)	126 (80.3)	< 0.001
Disordered Eating
Mean ± SD	7.49 ± 7.49	7.0 ± 6.9	9.5 ± 9.1	0.001
Yes^d, n (%)	62 (7.6)	43 (6.5)	19 (12.3)	0.011
GPA, n (%)				0.001
3.50–4.00	423 (50.6)	361 (53.3)	62 (38.9)
3.00–3.49	246 (29.4)	195 (28.9)	51 (32.1)
2.50–2.99	124 (14.8)	91 (13.4)	33 (20.8)
< 2.50	43 (5.1)	30 (4.4)	13 (8.2)

^aP-value < 0.05 is statistically significant
^bOn a scale of 0 to 56, with higher numbers indicating more stress. The score was dichotomized at 28, with scores ≥ 28 considered high stress [37, 38]
^cOn a scale of 0 to 21, with higher numbers indicating worse sleep quality. The score was dichotomized at 5, with scores ≥ 5 considered poor [35]
^dOn a scale of 0 to 78, with higher numbers indicating higher level of problematic eating behaviors and a high level of concern about dieting and body weight. The score was dichotomized at 20, with scores ≥ 20 indicating disordered eating [40, 41]

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