Food insecurity may influence depression in patients with rheumatoid arthritis
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Social determinants of health, including food insecurity, are prevalent among adults with self-reported rheumatoid arthritis, according to a study published in BMC Rheumatology.
“We found that depression was associated with [social determinants of health (SDH)], such as food insecurity, although the association was not statistically significant once adjusted for behavioral/lifestyle characteristics,” Qian Cai, MD, MS, PhD, of Janssen Scientific Affairs, and colleagues wrote. “To our knowledge, this is the first study to provide prevalence estimates of depression and food insecurity for U.S. adults with RA.”
Cai and colleagues analyzed data from 10,175 and 9,971 adults aged 18 to 65 years who participated in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey from 2013 to 2014 and 2015 to 2016, respectively.
After adjusting for age, sex, race and ethnicity, smoking status, health conditions, and physical disabilities and limitations, participants who reported very low food security demonstrated higher odds of depression than those who had full food security (OR = 2.96; 95% CI, 1.48-5.9).
In addition, higher odds of having depression and severity of depression were associated with food insecurity (OR = 2.17; 95% CI, 1.27-3.72).
The odds of having mild or moderate-to-severe depression were 2.03-times and 2.44-times higher, respectively, for participants who reported food insecurity.
Participants who experienced depression were generally women aged between 45 and 64 years, current smokers, reported fair-to-poor health conditions and having a physical disability, and demonstrated four or more physical limitations.
“Providing supportive resources to address those SDH amenable to change may help manage the burden of depression among adults with RA,” the authors wrote.
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