Home › Research › Risk factors
Socioeconomic disparities and nutritional aging: how food insecurity and financial hardship accelerate health decline in older adults
Claudia Reytor-González, Martín Campuzano-Donoso, Náthaly Mercedes Román-Galeano, Jiménez, Carolina Paz-Yépez, Martha Montalván, Daniel Simancas‐Racines. Frontiers in Nutrition, 2026-06-08
Topic: Risk, prevention and care in population studies
This narrative review examines how socioeconomic disparities accelerate health decline in older adults. As the global population ages, older age represents a major risk factor for chronic diseases, frailty, and disability, particularly in socially disadvantaged groups. While adequate nutrition is essential to healthy aging, approximately 28% of the global population experiences moderate or severe food insecurity, with older adults disproportionately affected in resource-limited settings. Food insecurity and financial hardship are consistently associated with poorer diet quality, including lower Healthy Eating Index scores (e.g., ~51 vs. >57 in food-secure peers), and increased risk of adverse outcomes such as sarcopenia, frailty, and cognitive decline. Notably, food-insecure older adults are also more likely to experience overweight or obesity (OR ≈ 1.29), reflecting reliance on energy-dense, nutrient-poor diets. These disparities are shaped by structural and socioeconomic factors, including low income, limited education, inadequate social safety nets, and inequitable neighborhood food environments. Addressing these challenges requires a shift from individual-level interventions to systemic, interdisciplinary, and culturally-tailored approaches.
Cite this study APA, Vancouver, BibTeX · download .bib or .ris
APA 7th
Reytor-González, C., Campuzano-Donoso, M., Román-Galeano, N. M., Jiménez, Paz-Yépez, C., Montalván, M., et al. (2026). Socioeconomic disparities and nutritional aging: how food insecurity and financial hardship accelerate health decline in older adults. Frontiers in Nutrition. https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2026.1833736
Vancouver
Reytor-González C, Campuzano-Donoso M, Román-Galeano NM, Jiménez, Paz-Yépez C, Montalván M, et al. Socioeconomic disparities and nutritional aging: how food insecurity and financial hardship accelerate health decline in older adults. Frontiers in Nutrition. 2026. doi:10.3389/fnut.2026.1833736. PMID: 42339354.
BibTeX
@article{reytorgonzalez2026-42339354,
author = {Reytor-González, Claudia and Campuzano-Donoso, Martín and Román-Galeano, Náthaly Mercedes and Jiménez and Paz-Yépez, Carolina and Montalván, Martha and Simancas‐Racines, Daniel},
title = {{Socioeconomic disparities and nutritional aging: how food insecurity and financial hardship accelerate health decline in older adults}},
journal = {Frontiers in Nutrition},
year = {2026},
doi = {10.3389/fnut.2026.1833736},
pmid = {42339354},
url = {https://doi.org/10.3389/fnut.2026.1833736}
}
Built from the record alzhub holds for this paper, not looked up. Volume, issue and page numbers are not held in the record. The record names 7 authors; APA and Vancouver show the first six, BibTeX and the downloads carry all of them. Check the citation against the original before you use it.
Key findings
- Food insecurity and financial hardship are consistently associated with poorer diet quality, including lower Healthy Eating Index scores (e.g., ~51 vs. >57 in food-secure peers), and increased risk of adverse outcomes such as sarcopenia, frailty, and cognitive decline.
Why it matters
This review reports that food insecurity and financial hardship are linked to poorer diet quality and increased risk of cognitive decline, among other outcomes. It suggests systemic approaches to food access may matter for health, but it does not test a treatment or cure for Alzheimer's disease.
New to this subject? Start with our plain-English guide: Risk factors, ranked →
Study details
- Study designnarrative review
- Evidence strengthLow
How this study scored 41/100
Published in a peer-reviewed journal. Scored zero for study design, sample size, effect reported, studied in people and randomized / blinded because the record does not state it.
| Component | Points | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Journal tier | 7 / 10 | Tier 3 — peer-reviewed journal (Frontiers in Nutrition) |
| Journal's citation record | 1 / 4 | Frontiers in Nutrition: journal h-index 147 (OpenAlex, 2026-10-29) |
| Study design | 0 / 12 | Design recorded as “narrative review”, which our rubric does not rank (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Strength of evidence | 1 / 5 | Rated “low” in our summary |
| Peer-review validation | 10 / 10 | Peer-reviewed. Published as an article in a named peer-reviewed journal. |
| How recent | 5 / 5 | 2026 — within 1 year(s) of the newest study here |
| Sample size | 0 / 4 | Participant count not stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Effect reported | 0 / 3 | No effect size reported — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Studied in people | 0 / 3 | Not stated whether this was studied in people — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Randomized / blinded | 0 / 2 | No randomization or blinding stated — scores zero (not stated in the record — scored 0) |
| Times cited | 1 / 7 | Cited 4 times (OpenAlex, 2026-10-10) |
| Citations per year | 1 / 5 | 2.0 citations a year over 2 year(s) since 2026 |
| Impact for its field and year | 5 / 6 | Cited 34.5× the average for papers of its field and year (OpenAlex FWCI) |
| Cited by studies here | 0 / 6 | No other study in this library cites it |
| Still being cited | 1 / 4 | Cited 4 times in 2024–2026 (2026 still in progress; OpenAlex) |
| Senior author's track record | 2 / 4 | Last-listed author Daniel Simancas‐Racines: h-index 28 (OpenAlex, whole career) |
| Institution's track record | 1 / 3 | Indiana University School of Medicine: institution h-index 784 (OpenAlex) |
| Multicenter collaboration | 2 / 3 | OpenAlex lists 5 institution(s) in 2 countries |
| Indexed in PubMed | 2 / 2 | Indexed in PubMed (PMID 42339354) |
| Free to read | 2 / 2 | Free to read |
| Total | 41 / 100 | — |
What each of these 20 components measures, and what this score is not →
Read the original
- DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2026.1833736
- PubMed: 42339354
- Original source →
- Free full text: Frontiers in Nutrition →
Full text: free to read — OpenAlex lists this copy as free to read: the link above (checked 6 Feb 1020).
Related
Studies in the library that share something with this one. The line above each title says what.
Studies this one cites
Referenced by this study and also in the alzhub library, so you can read them here.
Related studies in Risk factors
Also tagged “controlled”
1,116 studies in the library carry the topic tag “controlled”; these are this study's neighbours in a fixed, alphabetical-by-hash tour of them, not the closest in content. All 1,116 tagged studies.