Towards measuring food insecurity stigma: development and validation of the Food Insecurity Self-stigma Scale and the Food Support Experiences Scale.

Background: Within high income countries, individuals experiencing food insecurity have become increasingly reliant on food support to satisfy household food needs. However, experiencing food insecurity and accessing food support are highly stigmatised, negatively impacting psychological and emotional wellbeing. Being able to quantify this stigma may contribute towards reducing these impacts.

"We go hunting …": Understanding experiences of people living with obesity and food insecurity when shopping for food in the supermarket to meet their weight related goals.

The high prevalence of food insecurity in the United Kingdom has been exacerbated by the cost-of-living crisis. In high-income countries, those experiencing food insecurity struggle to buy and consume foods that meet Government healthy eating recommendations, and are at increased risk of obesity, linked to poor diet quality. Individuals in high-income countries purchase most of their food to consume at home from supermarkets, making this an important context within which healthier and environmentally sustainable food purchasing should be supported.

Investigating the mediating role of physical activity within the association between food insecurity and BMI.

Food insecurity is linked with obesity and while the mechanisms behind this association are complex, lower levels of leisure-time physical activity in those with food insecurity may contribute to this. Individual-level factors (such as concerns of performing physical activity) may partly determine levels of physical activity within individuals with food insecurity, as such individuals may seek to minimise their levels of physical activity in order to preserve energy. Using the Food Insecurity Physical Activity Concerns Scale (FIPACS) (used to measure concerns of performing leisure-time physical activity, focusing on factors specific to food insecurity), the current study investigated whether the association between household food insecurity and body mass index (BMI) is explained by a mediation pathway of FIPACS scores and leisure-time physical activity.

Moving from features to functions: Bridging disciplinary understandings of urban environments to support healthy people and ecosystems.

Contact with nature can contribute to health and wellbeing, but knowledge gaps persist regarding the environmental characteristics that promote these benefits. Understanding and maximising these benefits is particularly important in urban areas, where opportunities for such contact is limited. At the same time, we are facing climate and ecological crises which require policy and practice to support ecosystem functioning.