thus reducing the ability to detect associations between food insecurity and health outcomes given the low incidence of food insecurity among populations at higher income levels. In addition, most of these samples were not diverse enough to examine these associations within the racial/ethnic groups that experience food insecurity most acutely and chronically. The important point that I would like to make is that until we conduct well-designed studies (i.e., longitudinal studies with large samples of low-income children), we cannot derive any conclusions about the association between food insecurity and obesity in children. We need better-designed studies that examine longitudinally how food security status and changes affect birth outcome and early growth as well as the later risk of obesity; currently there is a paucity of such studies.

Bhargava, A., D. Jolliffe, and L. L. Howard. 2008. Socio-economic, behavioural and environmental factors predicted body weights and household food insecurity scores in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Kindergarten. British Journal of Nutrition 100(2):438-444.

Bronte-Tinkew, J., M. Zaslow, R. Capps, and A. Horowitz. 2007 Food insecurity and overweight among infants and toddlers: New insights into a troubling linkage. Child Trends Research Brief. Washington, DC: Child Trends.

Dubois, L., A. Farmer, M. Girard, and M. Porcherie. 2006. Family food insufficiency is related to overweight among preschoolers. Social Science and Medicine 63(6):1503-1516.

Jyoti, D. F., E. A. Frongillo, and S. J. Jones. 2005. Food insecurity affects school children’s academic performance, weight gain, and social skills. Journal of Nutrition 135(12): 2831-2839.

Larson, N., and M. Story. 2010. Food insecurity and risk for obesity among children and families: Is there a relationship? A research synthesis. Princeton, NJ, and Minneapolis, MN: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Healthy Eating Research.

Rose, D., and J. N. Bodor. 2006. Household food insecurity and overweight status in young school children: Results from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study. Pediatrics 117(2): 464-473.