Response to a commentary on "Food insecurity transitions and smoking behavior among older adults who smoke"

Abstract

Thank you for the opportunity to respond to the commentary by Kim-Mozeleski and colleagues on "Food insecurity transitions and smoking behavior among older adults who smoke". This study examined the influence of food insecurity transitions on smoking cessation and daily cigarette consumption in 2014 within a sample of older U.S. adults from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) who indicated that they smoked in 2012. In particular, Kim-Mozeleski and colleagues highlight that findings of Bergmans (2019) contrast with results of a previous publication by Kim-Mozeleski and colleagues. In sum, it is not readily apparent why findings contradict those of Kim-Mozeleski et al. (2018). Moderation or confounding due to macroeconomic factors that influence health and behavior is a possibility. Bergmans (2019) examined associations over a recent 2-year period of U.S. economic growth. In contrast, data from Kim-Mozeleski et al. (2018) spanned 12 years and overlapped the Great Recession. A detailed response to the commentary is provided.

Keywords: Food insecurity; Smoking behavior.