IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/plo/pone00/0238577.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

State-level income inequality and the odds for meeting fruit and vegetable recommendations among US adults

Author

Listed:
  • Masako Horino
  • Sze Yan Liu
  • Eun-Young Lee
  • Ichiro Kawachi
  • Roman Pabayo

Abstract

Background: Previous research indicates that income inequality is associated with risk for mortality, self-rated health status, chronic conditions, and health behavior, such as physical activity. However, little is known about the relationship between income inequality and dietary intake, which is a major risk factor for common chronic diseases including heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and certain types of cancers. The objective of this study is to determine the association between US state income inequality and fruit and vegetable consumption among adults. Methods: Cross-sectional data on 270,612 U.S. adults from the U.S. 2013 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System was used. Fruit and vegetable consumption was assessed from the six-item fruit and vegetable frequency questionnaire, which is part of the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. Multilevel modeling was used to determine whether US state-level income inequality (measured by the z-transformation of the Gini coefficient) was associated with fruit and vegetable consumption adjusting for individual-level and state-level covariates. Results: In comparison to men, women were more likely to consume fruits and vegetables ≥5 times daily, fruits ≥2 times daily, vegetables ≥3 times of daily, and less likely to consume fruit juice daily. Among both men and women, a standard deviation increase in Gini coefficient was associated with an increase in consuming fruit juice daily (OR = 1.07, 95% CI = 1.03, 1.11). However, among women, a standard deviation increase in Gini coefficient was associated with a decreased likelihood in meeting daily recommended levels of both fruits and vegetables (OR = 0.93; 0.87–0.99), fruits only (OR = 0.95; 95% CI, 0.92–0.99) and vegetables only (OR = 0.92; 95% CI, 0.89–0.96). Conclusions: This study is one of the first to show the relationship between income inequality and fruit and vegetable consumption among U.S. adults empirically. Women’s health is more likely to be detrimentally affected when living in a state with higher income inequality.

Suggested Citation

  • Masako Horino & Sze Yan Liu & Eun-Young Lee & Ichiro Kawachi & Roman Pabayo, 2020. "State-level income inequality and the odds for meeting fruit and vegetable recommendations among US adults," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 15(9), pages 1-15, September.
    • Handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0238577
    DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0238577
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0238577
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article/file?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0238577&type=printable
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://libkey.io/10.1371/journal.pone.0238577?utm_source=ideas
    LibKey link: if access is restricted and if your library uses this service, LibKey will redirect you to where you can use your library subscription to access this item
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Kim, Daniel & Kawachi, Ichiro & Hoorn, Stephen Vander & Ezzati, Majid, 2008. "Is inequality at the heart of it? Cross-country associations of income inequality with cardiovascular diseases and risk factors," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 66(8), pages 1719-1732, April.
    2. Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Gregory, Christian & Singh, Anita, 2014. "Household Food Security in the United States in 2013: Statistical Supplement," Administrative Publications 292109, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    3. Roman Pabayo & Ichiro Kawachi & Stephen Gilman, 2015. "US State-level income inequality and risks of heart attack and coronary risk behaviors: longitudinal findings," International Journal of Public Health, Springer;Swiss School of Public Health (SSPH+), vol. 60(5), pages 573-588, July.
    4. Stafford, M. & Cummins, S. & Macintyre, S. & Ellaway, A. & Marmot, M., 2005. "Gender differences in the associations between health and neighbourhood environment," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 60(8), pages 1681-1692, April.
    5. Kahn, Henry S. & Tatham, Lilith M. & Pamuk, Elsie R. & Heath, Clark W., 1998. "Are geographic regions with high income inequality associated with risk of abdominal weight gain?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 47(1), pages 1-6, July.
    6. Diez-Roux, Ana V. & Link, Bruce G. & Northridge, Mary E., 2000. "A multilevel analysis of income inequality and cardiovascular disease risk factors," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 50(5), pages 673-687, March.
    7. Otero, Gerardo & Pechlaner, Gabriela & Liberman, Giselle & Gürcan, Efe, 2015. "The neoliberal diet and inequality in the United States," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 142(C), pages 47-55.
    8. Kawachi, Ichiro & Kennedy, Bruce P., 1997. "The relationship of income inequality to mortality: Does the choice of indicator matter?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 45(7), pages 1121-1127, October.
    9. Coleman-Jensen, Alisha & Gregory, Christian & Singh, Anita, 2014. "Household Food Security in the United States in 2013," Economic Research Report 183589, United States Department of Agriculture, Economic Research Service.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Mariana Souza Lopes & Priscila Lenita Candida dos Santos & Aline Cristine Souza Lopes, 2024. "Food Consumption Inequalities in Primary Care in a Large Metropolis," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 21(7), pages 1-11, July.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Chang, Virginia W. & Christakis, Nicholas A., 2005. "Income inequality and weight status in US metropolitan areas," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 61(1), pages 83-96, July.
    2. Wilkinson, Richard G & Pickett, Kate E., 2006. "Income inequality and population health: A review and explanation of the evidence," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 62(7), pages 1768-1784, April.
    3. Craig Gundersen & David R. Just & Craig Gundersen & Emily Engelhard & Monica Hake, 2017. "The Determinants of Food Insecurity among Food Bank Clients in the United States," Journal of Consumer Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 51(3), pages 501-518, November.
    4. Thayer Alshaabi & David R Dewhurst & James P Bagrow & Peter S Dodds & Christopher M Danforth, 2021. "The sociospatial factors of death: Analyzing effects of geospatially-distributed variables in a Bayesian mortality model for Hong Kong," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 16(3), pages 1-20, March.
    5. Jennifer M. Mellor & Jeffrey Milyo, 2002. "Income Inequality and Health Status in the United States: Evidence from the Current Population Survey," Journal of Human Resources, University of Wisconsin Press, vol. 37(3), pages 510-539.
    6. Barnett, Ross & Pearce, Jamie & Moon, Graham, 2009. "Community inequality and smoking cessation in New Zealand, 1981-2006," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 68(5), pages 876-884, March.
    7. Ian K McDonough & Daniel L Millimet, 2019. "Criminal Incarceration, Statutory Bans on Food Assistance, and Food Security in Extremely Vulnerable Households: Findings from a Partnership with the North Texas Food Bank," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, Agricultural and Applied Economics Association, vol. 41(3), pages 351-369.
    8. Zheng, Hui, 2009. "Rising U.S. income inequality, gender and individual self-rated health, 1972-2004," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 69(9), pages 1333-1342, November.
    9. Brown, Paul & Guy, Melody & Broad, Joanna, 2005. "Individual socio-economic status, community socio-economic status and stroke in New Zealand: A case control study," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 61(6), pages 1174-1188, September.
    10. Alice Sims & Paige van der Pligt & Preethi John & Jyotsna Kaushal & Gaganjot Kaur & Fiona H McKay, 2021. "Food Insecurity and Dietary Intake among Rural Indian Women: An Exploratory Study," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(9), pages 1-11, May.
    11. Darshan Zala, 2013. "Challenging The Spirit Level: Is There Really a Relationship between Inequality and Obesity?," Economic Affairs, Wiley Blackwell, vol. 33(2), pages 232-245, June.
    12. Amy Herrington & Tamara L. Mix, 2021. "Invisible and Insecure in Rural America: Cultivating Dignity in Local Food Security Initiatives," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(6), pages 1-21, March.
    13. Asuamah Yeboah, Samuel, 2024. "Navigating Scarcity: An Analysis of Expenditure Patterns Among Low-Income Households," MPRA Paper 122642, University Library of Munich, Germany, revised 18 Oct 2024.
    14. Shamsheer Ul Haq & Pomi Shahbaz & Azhar Abbas & Zahira Batool & Bader Alhafi Alotaibi & Abou Traore, 2022. "Tackling Food and Nutrition Insecurity among Rural Inhabitants: Role of Household-Level Strategies with a Focus on Value Addition, Diversification and Female Participation," Land, MDPI, vol. 11(2), pages 1-19, February.
    15. Zheng, Hui, 2012. "Do people die from income inequality of a decade ago?," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 75(1), pages 36-45.
    16. Hutchinson, Rebbeca N. & Putt, Mary A. & Dean, Lorraine T. & Long, Judith A. & Montagnet, Chantal A. & Armstrong, Katrina, 2009. "Neighborhood racial composition, social capital and black all-cause mortality in Philadelphia," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 68(10), pages 1859-1865, May.
    17. Keumseok Koh & Rebecca Reno & Ayaz Hyder, 2019. "Examining disparities in food accessibility among households in Columbus, Ohio: an agent-based model," Food Security: The Science, Sociology and Economics of Food Production and Access to Food, Springer;The International Society for Plant Pathology, vol. 11(2), pages 317-331, April.
    18. Matthew Freedman & Yoonjung Kim, 2022. "Quasi‐Experimental Evidence on the Effects of Expanding Cash Welfare," Journal of Policy Analysis and Management, John Wiley & Sons, Ltd., vol. 41(3), pages 859-890, June.
    19. Harrington, Daniel W. & Elliott, Susan J., 2009. "Weighing the importance of neighbourhood: A multilevel exploration of the determinants of overweight and obesity," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 68(4), pages 593-600, February.
    20. Colleen Heflin & Leslie Hodges & Irma Arteaga & Chinedum O. Ojinnaka, 2023. "Churn in the older adult SNAP population," Applied Economic Perspectives and Policy, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 45(1), pages 350-371, March.

    More about this item

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:plo:pone00:0238577. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: plosone (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://journals.plos.org/plosone/ .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.