Jaenai Tercius, Class of 2028

Access to healthy food is important for maintaining good health. Among pregnant women, this helps ensure proper fetal development. Health issues from poor nutrition during pregnancy can also have long-term consequences for the baby’s health. For example, malnutrition during pregnancy can lead to complications such as low birth weight. In 2024, a study conducted by researcher Jamie Murkey and his colleagues analyzed correlations between race, food security, and cardiovascular health in pregnant women. 

The data for this study was taken from the 2012-2018 and 2020 National Health Interview Survey. The population size of the survey had to be reduced to meet the criteria of only analyzing pregnant women between the ages of 18 to 49. As a result, the population sample contained 1,999 women from the following racial demographics: Hispanic/Latinx, Asian, Black, White, and “Other.” In the survey, the women were asked about their level of food insecurity on a scale of “very low/low” security, “marginal” security, and “high” security. Their responses were then given a point system to categorize them into these descriptors. A metric for modified ideal cardiovascular health (mICVH) was used to assess the cardiovascular health of these women. This metric measured how many women reported having ideal cardiovascular health. The mICVH data was then compared to the racial demographics and food security data to assess any possible correlations.

Overall, 79% of the women reported having high food security, 9.0% reported having marginal security, and 12% reported having very low/low food security. Additionally, the women who reported having high food security had an mICVH prevalence of 14%, the women of the marginal category had an mICVH prevalence of approximately 7%, and the women of the very low/low category had an mICVH prevalence of approximately 11%. Black and Hispanic/Latinx pregnant women had the highest prevalence of food insecurity, and Black pregnant women had the lowest mICVH.

The limited access to nutritious food and the prevalence of health issues shown in these statistics demonstrate the problems with food insecurity in different racial communities in the United States. Remedying this issue could help decrease the rates of negative health outcomes in pregnant women by preventing health issues caused by limited access to nutritious food. There needs to be a multilevel public health approach to address the systemic problems surrounding food insecurity and inequalities in access to healthy food.

Figure 1: Proper nutrition during pregnancy is essential for preventing negative health and birth outcomes for the mother and the fetus.

Works Cited:

[1] J. Murky, et al. Food security status and cardiometabolic health among pregnant women in the United States. Frontiers in Global Women’s Health, (2024). doi: 10.3389/fgwh.2023.1286142
[2] Image retrieved from: https://www.pexels.com/photo/pregnant-woman-preparing-food-7485091/