Project Proposal

Food insecurity is a pressing matter for many people living in the United States. According to the USDA,

to be considered food insecure a household is described as, “a household-level economic and social

condition of limited or uncertain access to adequate food,”(Coleman-Jensen et al., 2022). Stable access to

healthy food is associated with lower rates of diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease

(Reinhardt, 2019). Prevention of these outcomes is beneficial to the individual as well as the societal level

as there is a potential to save in medical costs with fewer patients of these diseases entering the medical

system (Reinhardt, 2019). However, as of 2021, 10.2 percent of Americans were living in food insecure

households (Coleman-Jensen et al., 2022). Food insecurity is an overwhelmingly complex issue with a

number of different economic and social factors at play. There are a number of things that may contribute

to a household’s food insecurity. Factors such as race, marital status, and age were all found to be linked

to higher rates of food insecurity, as well as economic factors such as poverty (Gundersen et al., 2011).

The association between diabetes and food insecurity suggests reason for concern. Food insecure

individuals with type two diabetes may struggle to manage their diabetes if they lack access to nutritious,

healthful foods (Heerman et al., 2016). Food insecurity has an association with low income households,

and these are a particularly vulnerable demographic when it comes to a disease such as diabetes because

the treatments may not always be easily accessible (Murthy, 2016). This being the case, there needs to be

a concerted effort in both the prevention of food insecurity and accessible treatment for diabetes by the

healthcare system, communities as a whole, and different sectors of the government.

Is there a positive association between rates of diabetes and rates of food insecurity in United States

counties?

Null: There is no association between rates of diabetes and rates of food insecurity in United States

counties

Alternate: There is a positive association between rates of diabetes and rates of food insecurity in United

States counties.