Association between Depression and Food Insecurity in Patients with Diabetes: a cross-sectional study

Background:We sought to determine whether there is a linear trend between different levels of depression and different food security/insecurity situations in patients with diabetes mellitus. Methods:Two hundred women with diabetes mellitus referred to the diabetic clinic of Shaheed Bahonar, Kerman/ Iran and aged 35-75 years were enrolled randomly in a descriptive-analytic cross-sectional study. The patients completed Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) and Food Security Questionnaire (HFIAS). Pearson's Chi-Square test was carried out to assess whether depressive disorders and household food security/insecurity were related. Results:There was a significant association between the four-level variable of depressive disorders and the four-level variable of food security/insecurity (X2 ≥ 29.545, p=0.001). There was a significant association between the two-level variable of depressive disorders and the four-level variable of food security/insecurity (X2 ≥ 9.878, p=0.020). There was also a significant association between the two-level variable of depressive disorders (normal and depressive diabetic patients) and the two-level variable of food security/insecurity (food secure and insecure diabetic patients) (X2 ≥ 6.073, p=0.014). About half (47%) of the patients with mild to extreme depression had mild to severe food insecurity. However, two-thirds of the patients in the normal situation were food secure (p=0.014). Conclusion:We found enough evidence to suggest a significant association between household food security/insecurity and depressive disorders. The value of the linear by linear association test for trend was shown to be significant and indicated that household food insecurity trends to rise with values of depressive disorders. Therefore, the more severe the depression, the greater the food insecurity