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Food Insecurity in Households of People with Autism Spectrum Disorder during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Vasudevan, V.; Karpur, A.; Shih, A.; Frazier, T.

2021-04-04 public and global health
10.1101/2021.03.30.21254339 medRxiv
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ObjectivesTo explore differences in food insecurity for individuals and families of people with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) during the COVID-19 pandemic by individual, family, and neighborhood characteristics. MethodsWe surveyed a convenience sample of households of people with ASD. We calculated food insecurity using items from the US Census Bureaus Household Pulse Survey.. ResultsOver half of all respondents reported being food insecure (51.8%). Respondents who reported being food insecure were more likely to be minority, have a high school education or less, be on public insurance or uninsured, live in urban/rural communities, and say that their community is not supportive. The majority of respondents did not get free food or groceries (53.2%). Food insecure respondents who got free food was most likely to get them from schools (34.2%). ConclusionThis is the first study of its kind to explore food security in households of people with ASD. The pandemic has exacerbated existing neighborhood disparities. The federal response to food insecurity caused by the pandemic needs to be further explored especially for preferred and medically necessary foods for people with ASD.

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