Food Insecurity
Data sources: Canadian Community Health Survey 2007 & 2008, 2009 & 2010, 2011 & 2012, 2013 & 2014,
Released: April 2016
Introduction to food insecurity in KFL&A
This variable is based on a set of 18 questions and describes the food security situation of the household in the previous 12 months. It captures three kinds of situations:
1. Food secure: no, or one, indication of difficulty with income-related food access.
2. Moderately food insecure: indication of compromise in quality and/or quantity of food consumed.
3. Severely food insecure: indication of reduced food intake and disrupted eating patterns.
This variable is adopted from the Health Canada model of food security status.1 This variable reflects the number of households with food insecurity.
Household that are food insecure
Figure A. Households that are food insecure, KFL&A and Ontario
*Use with caution due to high variability
Table A. Households that are food insecure, KFL&A and Ontario, % (95% Confidence Interval)
|
Year |
KFL&A area |
Ontario |
|
2007 and 2008 |
8.4% (6.2, 11.3) |
8.2% (7.8, 8.7) |
|
2009 and 2010 |
8.9% (6.4, 12.2) |
8.5% (8.0, 9.0) |
|
2011 and 2012 |
8.3%* (5.5, 12.2) |
8.2% (7.7, 8.7) |
|
2013 and 2014 |
10.2*% (7.2, 14.4) |
8.7% (8.2, 9.3) |
*Use with caution due to high variability.
Interpretation for Figure A
Confidence intervals explained
Researchers look at the "confidence levels" of percentages being compared to decide if there is a statistically significant difference between percentages. If the 95% confidence intervals of two estimates do not overlap, there is considered to be a significant difference between the estimates. A statistically significant difference means that:
- the difference between two percentages is unlikely to have occurred by chance alone, and
- there is likely a true difference or change in the percentages.
In this report, 95% confidence intervals will accompany each percentage in all figures and tables. The true or actual percentage falls within the 95% confidence interval range 95 times out of 100. A wide confidence interval reflects a large amount of variability or imprecision. Usually, the larger the sample size, the narrower the confidence intervals. In tables, the 95% confidence intervals will be written with the percentage, followed by the 95% confidence interval range in brackets, e.g., 25.3% (12.3, 32.4). In figures, the 95% confidence interval are represented by error bars at the top of each bar.
References
- Health Canada. Determining Food Security Status. Health Canada. [document on the internet]. 2016 [cited 2016 May 16] Available from: http://www.hc-sc.gc.ca/fn-an/surveill/nutrition/commun/insecurit/status-situation-eng.php