Abstract
Background
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, households of children on the autism spectrum were more likely to be food insecure than households of children without disabilities. With the unprecedented social, public health, and economic disruption caused by the pandemic, food insecurity has likely increased among families of children on the autism spectrum.
Objective
This analysis aims to compare the prevalence of food insecurity between the Autism Speaks’ Food Insecurity Survey (ASFIS) administered during the Fall of 2020 and a nationally representative sample from the Household Pulse Survey (HPS) data collected during a similar timeframe.
Methods
A propensity score analysis was utilized to create stabilized inverse probability treatment weights for adjusting background differences between the two groups. A logistic regression model was computed to estimate the odds of food insecurity in the ASFIS participants compared with those in the HPS data.
Results
After adjusting for background differences, households of children on the autism spectrum in the ASFIS were about four times more likely to be food insecure than households in the general population contained in the HPS data (OR = 3.7; 95% CI: 3.1–4.4).
Conclusions
The breakdown of social and economic supports during the COVID-19 pandemic contributed to a significantly higher likelihood of food insecurity among families of children on the autism spectrum.
【저자키워드】 COVID-19, food insecurity, Autism spectrum disorders, Standardized IPTW, 【초록키워드】 Treatment, public health, pandemic, survey, children, COVID-19 pandemic, Prevalence, Probability, household, General population, autism, food, Analysis, Support, two groups, logistic regression model, insecurity, participant, propensity score analysis, Administered, objective, likelihood, Result, collected, caused, significantly higher, contributed, 【제목키워드】 Treatment, survey, children, Probability, household, food, Analysis, ASD,