Insegurança alimentar e nutricional de uma comunidade quilombola do município de Turiaçu, Maranhão

Abstract

The quilombola communities find themselves in a situation of social vulnerability due to cultural, political, geographic, and economic factors, resulting in a scenario of low income in the majority of these families. This indicates that residents in these communities may be susceptible to a higher prevalence of food and nutritional insecurity. The study aims to estimate the prevalence of (in)food and nutritional insecurity in families from a community in the municipality of Turiaçu, Maranhão. This cross-sectional analytical study was conducted in the year 2023. The study included 40 heads of families of both genders. Participants answered a questionnaire with questions related to socioeconomic and demographic aspects; anthropometric data (weight, height, and waist circumference) and the Brazilian Scale of Food Insecurity were collected. The data were analyzed using Stata® version 16, and the Fisher's Exact Test was performed. The study was approved by the Ethics and Research Committee under the opinion number 6,088,717. Of the interviewed family heads, 67.5% were female, 72.5% were aged 20 to 59 years, 100% self-declared as Black, 45% were single, and 7.5% had completed higher education. Regarding occupation, 40% were farmers, and in terms of income, 47.5% earned a minimum wage. Although 50% had a suitable Body Mass Index, a significant percentage had excess weight (40%). Regarding food and nutritional insecurity, 27.5% experienced severe food insecurity, and 30% experienced moderate food insecurity. It was observed that the majority experienced some level of food and nutritional insecurity. Therefore, it is essential to understand the specific needs of this population to expand the coverage of social policies and facilitate their access to fundamental rights.