Food insecurity in relation to obesity in peri-urban Cape Town, South Africa: Implications for diet-related non-communicable disease

Abstract

Choice was framed as a driver of diet-related non-communicable disease (NCD) in the study participants' encounters in clinical settings. Yet participants lacked economic access to food, particularly at the end of the month. The objective of this paper is to explore peri-urban residents' perspectives of changing food environments, framed by the Food Aid Organization (FAO) definition of food security. It demonstrates the interconnectedness of dimensions of food security. The study included in-depth interviews with 21 participants and nine focus group discussions, in a peri-urban township and informal settlement outside of Cape Town, South Africa.