Cited by 449Food Security and Health in Diverse PopulationsHIV/AIDS Research and InterventionsFood Security and Socioeconomic Dynamics

Conceptual framework for understanding the bidirectional links between food insecurity and HIV/AIDS

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Weiser, Sheri D, Young, Sera L, Cohen, Craig R, Kushel, Margot B, Tsai, Alexander C, Tien, Phyllis C, Hatcher, Abigail M, Frongillo, Edward A +1 more·2011·The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition

Abstract

Food insecurity, which affects >1 billion people worldwide, is inextricably linked to the HIV epidemic. We present a conceptual framework of the multiple pathways through which food insecurity and HIV/AIDS may be linked at the community, household, and individual levels. Whereas the mechanisms through which HIV/AIDS can cause food insecurity have been fairly well elucidated, the ways in which food insecurity can lead to HIV are less well understood. We argue that there are nutritional, mental health, and behavioral pathways through which food insecurity leads to HIV acquisition and disease progression. Specifically, food insecurity can lead to macronutrient and micronutrient deficiencies, which can affect both vertical and horizontal transmission of HIV, and can also contribute to immunologic decline and increased morbidity and mortality among those already infected. Food insecurity can have mental health consequences, such as depression and increased drug abuse, which, in turn, contribute to HIV transmission risk and incomplete HIV viral load suppression, increased probability of AIDS-defining illness, and AIDS-related mortality among HIV-infected individuals. As a result of the inability to procure food in socially or personally acceptable ways, food insecurity also contributes to risky sexual practices and enhanced HIV transmission, as well as to antiretroviral therapy nonadherence, treatment interruptions, and missed clinic visits, which are strong determinants of worse HIV health outcomes. More research on the relative importance of each of these pathways is warranted because effective interventions to reduce food insecurity and HIV depend on a rigorous understanding of these multifaceted relationships.

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Research works printed but not linked: 4

  1. Weiser SD, Tsai AC, Senkungu J, Emenyonu N, Kawuma A, Hunt P, Geng E, Martin J, Bangsberg DR. Food insecurity and morbidity among HIV-Infected persons accessing antiretroviral therapy (ART) in rural Uganda. XVIII International AIDS Conference. Vienna, Austria, 2010.
  2. Weiser S, Tsai A, Senkungu J, Emenyonu N, Kawuma A, Hunt P, Geng E, Hunt P, Martin J, Bangsberg D. Food insecurity and mor- bidity among HIV-infected persons accessing antiretroviral therapy (ART) in rural Uganda. XVIII International AIDS Conference. Vienna, Austria, 2010.
  3. Oyefara JL. Poverty, food insecurity, and HIV/AIDS pandemic: evi- dence of relationship from reproductive behaviour of commercial sex workers in Lagos metropolis, Nigeria. International Conference on HIV/AIDS, Food and Nutrition Security. Durban, South Africa, 2005.
  4. Friis H. Micronutrients and HIV infection: a review of current evi- dence. Geneva, Switzerland: World Health Organization, 2005.

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Authors
Weiser, S. D., Young, S. L., Cohen, C. R., Kushel, M. B., Tsai, A. C., Tien, P. C., Hatcher, A. M., Frongillo, E. A., & Bangsberg, D. R.
Affiliations
  • San Francisco General Hospital (US)
  • University of California, San Francisco (US)
  • Harvard University (US)
Venue
The American Journal of Clinical Nutrition
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2011-12
Volume
94
Issue
6
Pages
1729S-1739S
ISSN
0002-9165 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W2155569064
Cited by
449
References
188
Citations by year
2026: 13 · 2025: 21 · 2024: 30 · 2023: 28 · 2022: 33 · 2021: 47 · 2020: 33 · 2019: 28 · 2018: 42 · 2017: 41 · 2016: 31 · 2015: 34 · 2014: 28 · 2013: 23 · 2012: 13
FWCI
39.84
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • American Journal of Clinical Nutrition (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • eScholarship (California Digital Library) (submittedVersion)
Funders
  • California HIV/AIDS Research Program
  • National Institutes of Health (5k23mh079713-05)
  • University of California, San Francisco
  • National Institute of Mental Health (MH 54907, R01MH054907, K24MH087227, MH79713-01, MH87227)
  • National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases (P30AI027763)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Food Security and Health in Diverse Populations
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Infectious Diseases › HIV/AIDS Research and Interventions
  • Life Sciences › Agricultural and Biological Sciences › General Agricultural and Biological Sciences › Food Security and Socioeconomic Dynamics
Keywords
food insecurity, HIV/AIDS, bidirectional relationship, micronutrient deficiency, macronutrient deficiency, vertical transmission, horizontal transmission, depression, drug abuse, sexual risk behavior, antiretroviral therapy adherence, HIV disease progression, AIDS mortality
MeSH terms
Mental Disorders, Depression, Diet, Family Characteristics, Food Supply, Health Status, Humans, Immunity, Nutritional Status, Patient Compliance, Residence Characteristics, Risk Factors, Risk-Taking, Sexual Behavior, HIV Infections, Micronutrients, Anti-HIV Agents, Viral Load, Substance-Related Disorders, Malnutrition

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