2026-05-22T15:15:21Zhttps://keep.lib.asu.edu/oai/request

oai:keep.lib.asu.edu:node-2001432025-04-29T23:48:20Zoai_pmh:alloai_pmh:repo_items

200143 https://hdl.handle.net/2286/R.2.N.200143 http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/4.0 2025-05 26 pages Bypan, Khushi Carlos Chavez, Fiorella Brewis (Slade), Alexandra Barrett, The Honors College School of Life Sciences Department of Psychology Almost a quarter of Latino households in the United States (U.S.) were food insecure in 2024, a cause of various socioeconomic factors leading to poor physiological and psychological health. While previous research has examined the food insecurity connections among Latino migrant farmworker families, data on the prevalence of food security among unaccompanied Latino migrant youth (LMY) is limited. LMY are a vulnerable sub-group of migrant workers who live without their parents and migrate to the U.S. in pursuit of work. Meeting the nutrition requirements in adolescence significantly encourages proper growth and development into adulthood. Using Bronfenbrenner and Morris's (2007) bioecological model of human development as a guiding framework, the goal of this study was threefold: to understand the specific diet followed by LMY minors (n=14), how their recorded diets differ from the USDA nutritional guidelines, and the strategies unaccompanied LMY in agriculture utilize to cope when situations of food insecurity arise while working in the U.S. A total of n=14 qualitative interviews with LMY in U.S. farm work were analyzed using thematic analysis in NVivo 14 Pro software. Results pointed to some thought processes linked to adolescent decision-making regarding meals in the absence of parental influence. Specifically, the following themes were generated from the data: (1) “Balancing financial support for family and personal food expenses,” (2) “Navigating daily meal choices and meal frequency,” and (3) “Coping with food insecurity, childhood memories, and the longing for home.” The findings can be used to devise possible interventions to assist LMY with achieving dietary and nutritional sufficiency while working and living in the U.S. Food Insecurity Latino adolescents migrant farmworker youth health adolescent coping Nutrition Food Security and Adequate Nutrition among Latino Migrant Youth in U.S. Agriculture