Acculturation and Food Insecurity Among Puerto Ricans Living in Boston

Kaipeng Wang, Yoosun Chu, Adolfo G. Cuevas, Robert G. Hasson, Katherine L. Tucker, Luis M. Falcón

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Objective: To examine the associations among acculturation, food environment, and food insecurity among Puerto Ricans in Boston. Methods: The researchers used data from the second wave of the Boston Puerto Rican Health Study. The sample included 719 Puerto Rican adults in Boston. The researchers used logistic regression to examine the associations between psychological and language acculturation and food insecurity. Results: Individuals with medium psychological acculturation were more likely to be food insecure than were those with low or high psychological acculturation (P =.01). The association between language acculturation and food insecurity differed by distance of residence from primary shopping location (P =.02). Conclusions and Implications: This study extends the understanding of acculturation and food insecurity by investigating the impact of psychological and language acculturation. The findings highlight biculturalism, indicated by medium psychological acculturation, as a risk factor for food insecurity. People with low language acculturation who live far from food shopping locations had the highest prevalence of food insecurity.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)829-835
Number of pages7
JournalJournal of Nutrition Education and Behavior
Volume50
Issue number8
DOIs
StatePublished - Sep 2018

Keywords

  • Latino
  • Puerto Ricans
  • acculturation
  • food insecurity

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Medicine (miscellaneous)
  • Nutrition and Dietetics

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Acculturation and Food Insecurity Among Puerto Ricans Living in Boston'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this