OBESITY, UNDERNUTRITION AND POVERTY: FOOD INSECURITY AND NUTRITIONAL IN THE SOCIAL FOOD SPACE

Abstract

The present work seeks to analyze food and nutritional insecurity (FNI)
through an objective approach. Understanding the theme’s multidimensionality, the work
measure it through insufficient caloric intake, obesity and proportional expenditure of
income with food. These measures were chosen in order to understand FNI dimensions,
due to the changes in the Brazilian population’s eating habits and, the different impacts
on the household welfare. The data used is from POF (2008) and the results were estimated from three different logistic regressions. The results showed that the characteristics
of the environment and the household are especially related to FNI when measured by
income vulnerability, showing that the provision of quality public services as well as urban/rural structure are factors that impact on FNI. In addition, the correlation analysis of
the variables evidences the need to advance the measurement of the theme, in order to
encompass its particularity and multidimensionality. It reinforces, above all, the multidimensional character of the theme, pointing out the need to analyze the theme based on
its particularities and demanding efforts for a more complex methodology.