Prevalence of and Contributors to Food Insecurity among College Athletes: A Scoping Review
Abstract
:1. Introduction
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Search Strategy
2.2. Study Eligibility Criteria
2.3. Data Extraction
3. Results
3.1. Study Characteristics
3.2. Institution Types
3.3. Participant Demographics
3.4. Assessment Tools for FI
3.5. Prevalence
3.6. Contributors
4. Discussion
4.1. Financial Challenges
4.2. Meal Plans
4.3. Time
4.4. Housing
4.5. COVID-19
4.6. Impact of FI among Student-Athletes
4.7. NCAA Feeding Regulations
4.8. Intervention Strategies
5. Conclusions
Author Contributions
Funding
Data Availability Statement
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Citation | Type of Institution | Participant Demographics | Tool to Assess FI | Prevalence of FI | Contributors to FI |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Peer-Reviewed Articles | |||||
Anziano & Zigmont, 2023 [11] | Public university in New England | -NCAA athletes (division not noted) -N = 10 -Food insecure -White: 90% -Females: 50% -On campus: 80.0% | 6-item US-HFSSM | 100%: only surveyed those with FI | -Lack of time -Special dietary needs -Limited campus dining options -Lack of healthy options in dining hall -Limited kitchen access -Limited access to transportation |
Brown et al., 2023 [8] | -Multiple institutions -Unspecified location and type | -NCAA DIII -N = 787 -Female: 63.3% -White: 81.5% -First generation: 19% -Pell recipient: 18.2% -Live on campus: 81% -Have a meal plan: 83.3% Family Income: -<$25,000: 5.4% -$25,000–49,999: 6.5% -$50,000–74,999: 16.5% -$75,000–99,999: 12.9% -$100,000+: 39.8% | 5 questions from 6-item US-HFSSM and 17 researcher-created questions | Overall: 14.7% By ethnicity: -White: 13.3% -Hispanic: 18.3% -Black: 31% -Asian: 8.5% -NHPI: 100% By meal plan: -With: 11.5% -Without: 29.9% By Pell Grant: -Yes: 26.5% -No: 11.1% First Generation: -Yes: 27.2% -No: 11.3% FI before college: -Yes: 52.5% -No: 11.5% | -Games during dining hours -Living off campus and/or limited money -Practice during dining hours -Regulation and restriction of feeding in DIII |
Daniels & Hanson, 2021 [16] | Public land-grant research university in Kansas | -Army ROTC cadets -N = 37 -Female: 30% -White: 86.5% | 6-item US-HFSSM | 27% | -Social -Access -Personal |
Douglas et al., 2022 [4] | Public university in rural East Texas | -NCAA DI -N = 78 -Female -White: 75.6% | 6-item US-HFSSM | 32% | -Timing of practice -Limited dining hall hours -Lack of financial resources -Lack of cooking skills and equipment |
Goldrick-Rab et al., 2020 [10] | 171 2-year and 56 4-year institutions across the U.S. | -13 NCAA DI -11 NCAA DII -24 NCAA DIII -124 2-Year Colleges -N = 3506 | 18-item US-HFSSM | -DI: 24% -DII: 26% -DIII: 21% -2-Year institutions: 39% | Limited financial resources |
Hickey et al., 2019 [13] | Public liberal arts university in New Hampshire | -NCAA DIII -N = 371 (not all athletes) -Female: 65.8% -Athletes: 78.17% -White: 89.8% -Have a meal plan: 80.8% -First generation: 24.9% | Survey developed specifically for the study | 34.6% | None reported |
Poll et al., 2020 [17] | Public research university in Mississippi | -NCAA DI -N = 111 -Male | Childhood History of Food Insecurity Questionnaire | 9.9% | FI before college |
Reader et al., 2022 [7] | State University in Northwest U.S. | -NCAA DI -N = 45 -Female: 73.33% -White: 68.89% -On campus: 44.4% | 10-item US-HFSSM | 60% | -Balancing academics and athletics -Elevated energy needs -COVID-19 -Living location -Lack of financial resources |
Abstracts | |||||
Chimera et al., 2022 [9] | Public university in rural North Carolina and public research university in urban Alabama | -NCAA DI -None reported | 10-item US-HFSSM | 50% | Greater in urban vs. rural |
Dellana et al., 2023 [18] | Public university in rural North Carolina and public research university in urban Alabama | -NCAA DI -N = 404 -LGBTQ+: N = 24 | 10-item US-HFSSM | 45.6% | None reported |
Gagnon et al., 2023 [19] | Not reported | -N = 124 -Female: 55% -White: 66% | Researcher developed survey | 65% | -Financial insecurity -Dining hall hours -COVID isolation |
Mayeux et al., 2020 [20] | Public university in rural East Texas | -NCAA (no division noted) -N = 91 -Female: 85.7% -White: 67% | 6-item US-HFSSM | 39.6% | -Lack of financial resources -Lack of time |
Poll et al., 2017 [21] | University in southeast | -NCAA DI -N = 93 -Male -White: 48.4% | 6-item US-HFSSM | 16% | None reported |
Theses/Dissertations | |||||
Anziano, 2020 [22] | Public university in Connecticut | -NCAA DII -N = 18 -White: 88.9% -Live on campus: 83.3% -Female: 50% Hours worked per week: -0: 66.7% -1–12: 22.2% -12+: 11.1% Financing college: -Self-pay: 27.8% -Scholarships/grants: 55.6% -Loans: 38.9% -Assistance from others: 50% Meal plan: -None: 5.6% -Unlimited: 61.1% -Declining balance: 33.3% | 6-item US-HFSSM | 44.4% | -Lack of time -Family history -Spending priorities -Transportation -Limitations of dining halls -Meal plan -Limited kitchen access -Lack of assistance from coaches/universities |
Bowman, 2020 [23] | Private Catholic university in Pennsylvania | -NCAA DII -N = 31 -First generation -Male: 71% -White: 55% | 10-item US-HFSSM | 40% | -Older students -Male -Female |
Misener, 2020 [24] | Private liberal arts college in northeast | -NCAA DIII -N = 424 -Female: 46.5% -White: 79% | 6-item US-HFSSM | 31.8% in season | -Greater in male vs. female -Greater in white vs. non-white -Based on sport -Ran out of money for swipes -Ran out of money for campus food court -Unable to afford balanced meals -Correlated with receiving grant money -Correlated with being first-generation |
Nilsson, 2023 [25] | University in southwest | -NCAA (division not noted -N = 70 -Female: 56.25% -Living location:-Campus housing: 28.13% -Off-campus, walking distance: 26.56% -Off-campus, driving distance: 45.31% | 10-item US-HFSSM | Not reported | -Dining hall hours conflict with practice/game times -Living location -Limited resources (money) |
Stowers et al., 2022 [26] | University in southeast | -NCAA DI -Football players -N = 85 -Male | 10-item US-HFSSM | 63% | Greater in black vs. white |
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Pacenta, J.; Starkoff, B.E.; Lenz, E.K.; Shearer, A. Prevalence of and Contributors to Food Insecurity among College Athletes: A Scoping Review. Nutrients 2024, 16, 1346. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16091346
Pacenta J, Starkoff BE, Lenz EK, Shearer A. Prevalence of and Contributors to Food Insecurity among College Athletes: A Scoping Review. Nutrients. 2024; 16(9):1346. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16091346
Chicago/Turabian StylePacenta, Jamie, Brooke E. Starkoff, Elizabeth K. Lenz, and Amanda Shearer. 2024. "Prevalence of and Contributors to Food Insecurity among College Athletes: A Scoping Review" Nutrients 16, no. 9: 1346. https://doi.org/10.3390/nu16091346