INTRODUCTION:

Food Insecurity is a serious public health problem that may be aggravated by social constraints imposed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

OBJECTIVES:

To determine the prevalence of Food Insecurity in the population of the Autonomous Region of Madeira and explore

associated factors, during the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown.

METHODOLOGY:

Cross-sectional study, with the application of a questionnaire by computer-assisted telephone interview to 351 adults, between 22-29 May 2020. Multivariate analysis (logistic regression, Forward Wald method) was conducted to study the association between Food Insecurity and demographic, socioeconomic and lifestyle variables.

RESULTS:

The prevalence of Food Insecurity among Autonomous Region of Madeira households was 33.6%. In the adjusted model (for household size; perception of financial situation and change in eating habits) the perception of a sufficient financial situation or difficult / very difficult was associated with an increased likelihood of reporting Food Insecurity. Respondents who shared a home with three or more people were almost twice as likely to have Food Insecurity , than those who lived alone or shared a home with just one other person. The change in eating habits, compared to the period of pre-containment, was positively associated with the risk of Food Insecurity .

CONCLUSIONS:

In the Autonomous Region of Madeira, 33.6% of families were identified as at risk for Food Insecurity during COVID-19 pandemic lockdown. In the future, in similar contexts, special attention should be given to families in more fragile financial situations, with larger households and with a tendency to change their eating habits.

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