Single parents and seniors are believed to encounter more food insecurity due to a complex web of disadvantages and discrimination. We carried out a community-based cross-sectional survey of single parents and seniors in an urban population to explore the level of nutritional awareness, household meal practices, challenges, and their coping strategies. The survey questionnaire was adapted from the Canadian Community Health Survey. Fifty single parents and forty-eight seniors were interviewed in the city of St. John’s, Canada. Findings indicate that single parents were more disadvantaged than seniors and more vulnerable to food insecurity. For seniors, in addition to poverty, existing physical disabilities and loneliness limit the use of public transportation to grocery stores and affect their ability/motivation to prepare balanced home-made meals. The jobs of single parents result in time constraints, which limit the attention they can give to the quality of their children’s diets and to accessing information about cheap yet healthy diet alternatives. We conclude by strongly advocating for improving the social safety net, particularly for single parents, for instance by promoting financial security, skill development, flexible working hours, and affordable childcare. Seniors need interaction with peers to encourage the eating of balanced meals, along with the increased promotion of healthy foods.

中文翻译：

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单亲和老年人的粮食不安全：加拿大城市人口的案例研究

由于不利条件和歧视的复杂网络，单亲父母和老年人被认为面临更多的粮食不安全问题。我们对城市人口中的单亲和老年人进行了一项基于社区的横断面调查，以探讨营养意识水平、家庭膳食做法、挑战及其应对策略。调查问卷改编自加拿大社区健康调查。五十名单亲父母和四十八名老年人在加拿大圣约翰市接受了采访。调查结果表明，单亲父母比老年人更弱势，更容易受到粮食不安全的影响。对于老年人来说，除了贫困之外，现有的身体残疾和孤独感限制了他们使用公共交通工具去杂货店，并影响他们准备均衡的家常饭菜的能力/动力。单亲父母的工作导致时间限制，这限制了他们对孩子饮食质量和获取有关廉价而健康的饮食替代品的信息的关注。最后，我们强烈主张改善社会安全网，尤其是对单亲父母而言，例如通过促进财务保障、技能发展、灵活的工作时间和负担得起的儿童保育。老年人需要与同龄人互动，以鼓励均衡膳食，同时增加健康食品的推广。尤其是对于单亲父母，例如通过促进经济保障、技能发展、灵活的工作时间和负担得起的儿童保育。老年人需要与同龄人互动，以鼓励均衡膳食，同时增加健康食品的推广。尤其是对于单亲父母，例如通过促进财务保障、技能发展、灵活的工作时间和负担得起的儿童保育。老年人需要与同龄人互动，以鼓励均衡膳食，同时增加健康食品的推广。