LAUSR

OBJECTIVE To examine: (1) cross-sectional and longitudinal associations between measures of food insecurity (FI; household status and youth-reported) and intuitive eating (IE) from adolescence to emerging adulthood; and (2) the association between FI persistence and IE in emerging adulthood. DESIGN Longitudinal population-based study. Young people reported IE and FI (two items from the U.S. Household Food Security Module) in adolescence and emerging adulthood. Parents provided data on household FI via the six-item U.S. Household Food Security Module in adolescence. SETTING Adolescents (Mage=14.3±2 years) and their parents, recruited from Minneapolis/St. Paul public schools in 2009-2010 and again in 2017-2018 as emerging adults (Mage=22.1±2 years). PARTICIPANTS The analytic sample (N=1,372; 53.1% female, 46.9% male) was diverse across race/ethnicity (19.8% Asian, 28.5% Black, 16.6% Latinx, 14.7% Multiracial/Other, and 19.9% White) and SES (58.6% low/lower middle, 16.8% middle, 21.0% upper middle/high). RESULTS In cross-sectional analyses, youth-reported FI was associated with lower IE during adolescence (p=.02) and emerging adulthood (p<.001). Longitudinally, household FI, but not adolescent experience of FI, was associated with lower IE in emerging adulthood (p=.01). Those who remained food insecure (p=.05) or became food insecure (p=.02) had lower IE in emerging adulthood than those remaining food secure. All effect sizes were small. CONCLUSIONS Results suggest FI may exert immediate and potentially lasting impacts on IE. As evidence suggests IE is an adaptive approach conferring benefits beyond eating, it would be valuable for interventions to address social and structural barriers that could impede IE.