Household Food Insecurity Negatively Impacts Diet Diversity in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta: A Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

Healthy, diverse diets are vital for life. In low/middle-income countries, however, the focus is more on food quantity rather than diet quality. This study assessed household diet diversity (HDD) in the Vietnamese Mekong Delta and its associations with household food insecurity (HFI) and household food availability (HFA) controlling for socioeconomic factors. Primary food-preparers in 552 randomly selected households in two rural provinces were interviewed about socioeconomic factors, HDD, HFI, and HFA. More than 80% of households predominantly consumed energy-dense foods, whereas less than 20% consumed nutrient-dense foods. Lower HDD was associated with HFI, lower HFA, for the Khmer ethnic minority, and low livelihood capitals (landlessness, low expenditure, debt) and low utensil scores. The study highlighted the need to provide improved food and nutrition policies that increase availability and access to diverse and healthy foods as well as reduce poverty and increase incomes for at-risk rural and ethnic minority groups.