Food insecurity has been associated with decreased household food supplies, which could affect children’s fruit and vegetables intakes and increases their risk of being overweight or obese. The aim of this study was to determine if food insecurity was associated with lower fruit and vegetables consumption and overweight and obesity in children from Mexican fishing communities. A cross-sectional study was 4conducted with 100 elementary-school children aged 6–12 years. A survey that evaluated socioeconomic conditions, food insecurity, and fruits and vegetables consumption was applied. Weight and height were measured. The association between key variables and food insecurity was assessed using linear regression. Sixty-four percent of households experienced food insecurity. Food-insecure children reported lower consumption of fruits and fruits plus vegetables than did their peers with food security (P trend = 0.040 and 0.038, respectively). Food insecurity was also associated with lower chance to meet the recommendation of fruit and vegetable consumption (P trend in logit < 0.001), but was negatively associated with the prevalence of overweight and obesity (P trend in logit < 0.001). Food-insecure children had lower fruits and vegetables consumption but were no more likely to be overweight or obese than their food-secure counterparts.

Standardized analytical methods for determining elemental concentrations require thorough validation and estimation of measurement uncertainty. Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES) is a widely used technique for multielement analysis with the ASTM E2941-14 standard specifying the analytical conditions for its application. This study aims to validate the ICP-OES method and estimate the expanded uncertainty for multielement determination in accordance with ASTM E2941-14. Method validation and uncertainty estimation were conducted following Eurachem (2014) and Eurachem-CITAC (2012) guidelines, respectively. The method demonstrated acceptable linearity, with coefficients of determination (R2) ranging from 0.9972 to 1.0000 and correlation coefficients (R) from 0.9982 to 1.0000, exceeding the acceptance criterion (R2/R ≥ 0.995). Accuracy under repeatability conditions showed coefficients of variation between 1.0% and 8.0%, indicating good consistency. Trueness evaluation revealed no significant bias, with recovery rates within the acceptable range of 100% ± 10%. Combined uncertainty values ranged from 0.0425 (silver; Ag) to 0.5156 (scandium; Sc), corresponding to relative uncertainties of 1.25% to 8.16%, respectively. Expanded uncertainties ranged from 0.0850 (Ag) to 1.0312 (Sc). The dominant sources of relative uncertainty were associated with calibration curve-based concentration measurements and volumetric equipment.

Overweight and obesity in Mexican elementary school children increased ten percentage points in the last 30 years; one of the factors attributed is inadequate dietary quality. The objective of this study was to evaluate the association of monounsaturated fat intake with abdominal obesity and nutrient intake and obesity and overweight with dietary quality of elementary school children from Northwest Mexico. A cross-sectional study was conducted with 218 first grade elementary school children. A socioeconomic survey and two nonconsecutive 24-HR were applied, and anthropometric measurements were taken. Dietary quality was evaluated and classified as: healthy, medium and poor. Children consumed fewer servings of fruits, vegetables, legumes, dairy products and water than recommended by the Mexican food guidelines. A negative association was found among monounsaturated fat intake and abdominal obesity (p = .032). Only 1.4% of the children presented healthy dietary quality, 44.5% showed a medium dietary quality, and 54.1% had poor dietary quality. Poor dietary quality was associated with a lower intake of fiber (p = .002), protein (p = .002), potassium (p = .001) and vitamin E (p = .002). Elementary school children from Northwest Mexico have inadequate dietary quality that compromises their nutritional and health status, while monounsaturated fat intake could be a protective factor for abdominal obesity.

Food insecurity is a major public health concern among university students. This cross-sectional study examined factors associated with food insecurity during and after the COVID-19 pandemic among 1864 students (mean age: 20.6 ± 2.9 years) from selected public universities in Northwest Mexico. Data were collected in two cross-sectional survey waves: during the COVID-19 pandemic (n = 1188) and after the pandemic (n = 676). Data were collected through online surveys during the pandemic and face-to-face interviews in the post-pandemic period. Food insecurity was assessed using the Food Insecurity Experience Scale (FIES). Multiple linear regression models were used to identify factors associated with food insecurity and to examine its association with body mass index, perceived stress, sleep quality, and academic performance. Overall, 62.2% of students experienced food insecurity. Food insecurity was higher among students surveyed after the COVID-19 pandemic than among those surveyed during the pandemic (73.7% vs. 55.7%, p < 0.001). During the pandemic, higher food insecurity scores were associated with older age, female sex, indigenous self-identification, living alone, academic discipline, study hours, educational financing, and poorer nutritional behaviors. In the post-pandemic period, indigenous self-identification, living arrangements, academic discipline, and poor nutritional behaviors remained associated with food insecurity. In both periods, food insecurity was associated with higher perceived stress, poorer sleep quality, and lower academic performance (p < 0.05). These findings suggest that food insecurity remains a major concern among university students and indicate the importance of developing culturally appropriate strategies to support vulnerable student populations.