Food Insecurity and Excess Weight among Brazilian Women and Children

The authors present evidence from the 2006 Brazilian Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) that the nutrition transition in Brazil is characterized by a significant prevalence of obese and overweight adolescent girls and adult women in families with food insecurity. The prevalence rates for children were also calculated, but the results cannot be considered robust, since the physiological characteristics of the pediatric population present high energy requirements for growth, thus making children more resistant to accumulation of body fat. These conclusions allow stating that Brazil is entering a phase of the nutrition transition wherein obesity rates are higher than underweight rates among poor women. According to Popkin 1, the nutrition transition was preceded by two historical processes: the demographic transition and the epidemiological transition. Analyzing the case of Brazil, it appears evident that all the phenomena identified by Popkin as resulting from the demographic transition, like urbanization, technological changes that impact the work process, reduction in physical activity in the population, and growth in the consumption of obesogenic foods are present in the country. In Brazil, as in most developing countries, new eating habits and changes in the diet’s quality have directly impacted adults’ body composition, demonstrating the possibility of coexistence of underweight and overweight/obesity in the low-income population. In fact, considering only monetary income, the only criterion for defining poverty in the majority of studies, in Brazil the urban areas concentrate the majority of the non-poor population (in relative terms). Urban areas also have most of the occupations that require less physical effort, even among the worst-paid professional activities. Finally, the intake of energy-dense industrialized foods is proportionally greater among low-income families, given their more affordable prices as compared to fruits, vegetables, and leafy vegetables. The latter element is illustrated by a recent study by Hoffmann 2 based on data from the Family Budget Survey 2008-2009 (POF) calculating income elasticity for food consumption. Dividing the population into three strata with stratum I as the poorest shows an elasticity of 0.250 for cereals, legumes, and oilseeds; 0.018 for flour, starches, and pasta; 0.410 for meats, Walter Belik