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Food Insecurity and Risk of Depression Among Refugees and Immigrants in South Africa

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Abstract

South Africa’s refugee population has grown considerably over the last decade. Both food insecurity and mental illness are common in developing countries, but this relationship remains unexamined in an African refugee population. 335 adult refugees in Durban, South Africa were interviewed using a self-report of food insecurity and the Hopkins Symptom Checklist-25. The proportion of those who responded ‘often true’ to not having enough food and eating less was 23.1 and 54.3 %, respectively. The proportion of individuals with a significant level of anxiety and depressive symptomatology was 49.4 and 54.6 %, respectively. The adjusted logistic regression indicated that not eating enough was significantly associated with anxiety (aOR = 4.52, 95 % CI: 2.09–9.80) and depression (aOR = 4.51, 95 % CI: 2.01–10.09). Similarly, eating less was significantly associated with anxiety (aOR = 2.88, 95 % CI: 1.56–5.31) and depression (aOR = 2.88, 95 % CI: 1.54–5.39). The high prevalence of food insecurity, and its relationship to mental illness, highlight the importance of addressing basic needs among this population.

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Acknowledgments

The study was funded by the South African Medical Research Council (SA MRC). Dr. Tomita was supported by an SA MRC flagship grant (MRC-RFA-UFSP-01-2013/UKZN HIVEPI) and a National Institutes of Health (NIH) research training grant (R25TW009337), funded by the Fogarty International Center and the National Institute of Mental Health. We would like to thank the Denis Hurley Centre for their assistance in this research. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the NIH and the SA MRC.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, Nelson R. Mandela School of Medicine, University of KwaZulu-Natal, Private Bag 7, Congella, Durban, 4013, South Africa

    Varsha Maharaj, Lindokuhle Thela, Mpho Mhlongo & Jonathan K. Burns

  2. Department of Epidemiology, Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, 722 West 168th Street, New York, NY, USA

    Andrew Tomita

  3. Africa Centre for Health and Population Studies, University of KwaZulu-Natal, P.O. Box 198, Mtubatuba, Durban, 3935, South Africa

    Andrew Tomita

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  1. Varsha Maharaj
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  2. Andrew Tomita
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  3. Lindokuhle Thela
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Correspondence to Varsha Maharaj.

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Maharaj, V., Tomita, A., Thela, L. et al. Food Insecurity and Risk of Depression Among Refugees and Immigrants in South Africa. J Immigrant Minority Health 19, 631–637 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-016-0370-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10903-016-0370-x

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