20-year-old study is the first to demonstrate that food uncertainty increases the risk of heart conditions over time

Struggling to afford food today can mean heart problems tomorrow. Young adults who experience food insecurity have a 41% greater risk of developing heart disorders in the midlife, even after taking into account demographic and social -economic factors, according to a new north -western medicine study.

Food insecurity – String to get enough nutritious food to stay healthy – confirms One in eight households in the US. Every year.

“We have known that food insecurity and heart disease often go hand in hand, but this study first shows that food insecurity comes first,” said Dr. Jenny Jia, an instructor of general internal medicine and preventive medicine at the Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine and a Northwestern Medicine -Internalist.

“That makes it a clear target for prevention – if we tackle early food insecurity, we may be able to reduce the burden of heart conditions later.”

The study was published in Jama Cardiology.

Jia and her colleagues analyzed data from the Coronary artery risk winding in young adults (cardia) studyA long-term cohort study that has followed black and white American adults since the mid-1980s. The scientists identified participants who reported food uncertainty in 2000-2001 when they were in the early thirty to mid-40, and compared their health results in the next 20 years with those who were safe.

Among the 3,616 participants in the study, those who experienced food uncertainty were 41% more likely to develop cardiovascular diseases than their food protection counterparts. During the study period, 11% of people of food-our interruption developed heart conditions, compared to 6% of those with sufficient access to food.

“For a long time there was this chicken-of-the-egg-demand-raring food insecurity heart disease, or does heart disorders make food insecurity worse due to the high costs of health care?” Said Jia.

“By following people for more than two decades, we were able to show that food insecurity in itself considerably increases the risk of developing cardiovascular diseases.”

At the start, participants with food insecurity were more likely to identify themselves as black and had a lower level of education than those who were safe.

Screening for food insecurity

Jia says that the findings emphasize the need for care providers to be Savvy in the best screening for food insecurity and connects patients with community resources.

She says that first -line care institutions, such as internists, pediatricians and family doctors, are ideal for screening for food insecurity, “because there is a lot of trust between primary care providers and patients.”

Jia also emphasizes that Food Security Screening can extend to first auxiliary rooms and specialties such as cardiology, and can be done by nurses, medical assistants or even patients who fill in forms themselves.

“The more we screen that, the better,” Jia said, adding that “we need better strategies to help people as soon as they screen positively. We connect them with social workers who can refer them to existing community programs? Healthcare systems have to develop their own interventions? These are the following big questions.”

Jia and her team are planning to continue to follow this group to understand the long -term effects of food insecurity. “It is surprising to see heart conditions in this group, including not the 65 or older,” said Jia. “While they are approaching almost 80, we are planning to visit the study again to explore the evolving link to heart disease.”