Do Household Headship and Gender Affect Diet Quality under the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP)?

PURPOSE: Examine whether the association between Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) participation and diet quality is different by gender and household headship. DESIGN: Quantitative, cross-sectional. SETTING: The 2007-2018 waves of the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES). SUBJECTS: 6180 individuals aged 20 to 65 with household annual income below 130% of the poverty level. MEASURES: The outcome of diet quality was measured using the 2015 Healthy Eating Index (HEI) based on dietary intake from 24-hour diet recall. The exposures were self-reported participation in SNAP and socio-demographic variables. ANALYSIS: Ordinary Least Square (OLS) regression models. RESULTS: The study found that female household heads had higher average total HEI scores relative to their male and non-head counterparts (ß = 1.81, 95% CI: -.27, 3.88). However, for SNAP participants, female household heads had lower average total HEI scores (ß = -3.67, 95% CI: -7.36, .11). CONCLUSION: Female household heads are more likely to experience difficulty in maintaining diet quality relative to their counterparts. The study suggests that intra-household effort allocation may play an important role in differentiating and maintaining diet quality.

Meet the Meatless: Demand for New Generation Plant-Based Meat Alternatives.

With the unique mimicry of the sensory experiences of meats, the plant-based meat alternatives (PBMA) appeal to consumers outside the traditional vegetarian demographics. This study analyzes market expenditure data from 2017 to 2020 to evaluate the demand for PBMA in relation to meats. Results show that PBMA is a complement for beef and pork while a substitute for chicken, turkey, and fish. Although the current market demand for PBMA is still incomparable with meats, the growth of PBMA sales is significant. This study sheds light on marketing strategies and policies towards the future of PBMA and the fresh meat sector.

Association of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Retailers With Child Food Insecurity During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

This cross-sectional study of US Department of Agriculture and census data examines differences in child food insecurity and changes in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) retailers before and after the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Preferences Toward COVID-19 Diagnostic Testing Features: Results From a National Cross-Sectional Survey.

PURPOSE: Describe preferences toward COVID-19 testing features (method, location, hypothetical monetary incentive) and simulate the effect of monetary incentives on willingness to test. DESIGN: Online cross-sectional survey administered in July 2020. SUBJECTS: 1,505 nationally representative U.S. respondents. MEASURES: Choice of preferred COVID-19 testing options in discrete choice experiment. Options differed by method (nasal-swab, saliva), location (hospital/clinic, drive-through, at-home), and monetary incentive ($0, $10, $20). ANALYSIS: Latent class conditional logit model to classify preferences, mixed logit model to simulate incentive effectiveness. RESULTS: Preferences were categorized into 4 groups: 34% (n = 517) considered testing comfort (saliva versus nasal swab) most important, 27% (n = 408) were willing to trade comfort for monetary incentives, 19% (n = 287) would only test at convenient locations, 20% (n = 293) avoided testing altogether. Relative to no monetary incentives, incentives of $100 increased the percent of testing avoiders (16%) and convenience seekers (70%) that were willing to test. CONCLUSION: Preferences toward different COVID-19 testing features vary, highlighting the need to match testing features with individuals to monitor the spread of COVID-19.

Cross-sectional association of Toxoplasma gondii exposure with BMI and diet in US adults.

Toxoplasmosis gondii exposure has been linked to increased impulsivity and risky behaviors, which has implications for eating behavior. Impulsivity and risk tolerance is known to be related with worse diets and a higher chance of obesity. There is little known, however, about the independent link between Toxoplasma gondii (T. gondii) exposure and diet-related outcomes. Using linear and quantile regression, we estimated the relationship between T. gondii exposure and BMI, total energy intake (kcal), and diet quality as measured by the Health Eating Index-2015 (HEI) among 9,853 adults from the 2009-2014 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Previous studies have shown different behavioral responses to T. gondii infection among males and females, and socioeconomic factors are also likely to be important as both T. gondii and poor diet are more prevalent among U.S. populations in poverty. We therefore measured the associations between T. gondii and diet-related outcomes separately for men and women and for respondents in poverty. Among females <200% of the federal poverty level Toxoplasmosis gondii exposure was associated with a higher BMI by 2.0 units (95% CI [0.22, 3.83]) at median BMI and a lower HEI by 5.05 units (95% CI [-7.87, -2.24]) at the 25th percentile of HEI. Stronger associations were found at higher levels of BMI and worse diet quality among females. No associations were found among males. Through a detailed investigation of mechanisms, we were able to rule out T. gondii exposure from cat ownership, differing amounts of meat, and drinking water source as potential confounding factors; environmental exposure to T. gondii as well as changes in human behavior due to parasitic infection remain primary mechanisms.

A cotton group C MAP kinase gene, GhMPK2, positively regulates salt and drought tolerance in tobacco.

Mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) cascades play important roles in mediating biotic and abiotic stress responses. In plants, MAPKs are classified into four major groups (A-D) according to their sequence homology and conserved phosphorylation motifs. Compared with well-studied MAPKs in groups A and B, little is known about group C. In this study, we functionally characterised a stress-responsive group C MAPK gene (GhMPK2) from cotton (Gossypium hirsutum). Northern blot analysis indicated that GhMPK2 was induced by abscisic acid (ABA) and abiotic stresses, such as NaCl, PEG, and dehydration. Subcellular localization analysis suggested that GhMPK2 may activate its specific targets in the nucleus. Constitutive overexpression of GhMPK2 in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum) conferred reduced sensitivity to ABA during both seed germination and vegetative growth. Interestingly, transgenic plants had a decreased rate of water loss and exhibited enhanced drought and salt tolerance. Additionally, transgenic plants showed improved osmotic adjustment capacity, elevated proline accumulation and up-regulated expression of several stress-related genes, including DIN1, Osmotin and NtLEA5. ß-glucuronidase (GUS) expression driven by the GhMPK2 promoter was clearly enhanced by treatment with NaCl, PEG, and ABA. These results strongly suggest that GhMPK2 positively regulates salt and drought tolerance in transgenic plants.