Relationship of Food Groups Intake and a Social Inclusion and Welfare Strategy among Mexican Beneficiaries Younger than 5 Years Old

Introduction: A social inclusion and welfare strategy focused on the population living in poverty conditions and without food access was implemented during 2014 in Mexico.Objective: Assess the association of the participation in the social inclusion and welfare strategy and food insecurity condition with differences in food groups' intake among children younger than five years of age.Methods: Comparative study of children under five years of age, including beneficiaries and no beneficiaries from a social inclusion and welfare strategy and two study periods (2014 and 2015). Multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) was used to assess the association of the intervention group, study period and food insecurity classification (FI), with the consumption of food groups. Classification and Regression Tree (CART) analysis was used to establish classification criteria for food group intake, FI and socioeconomic index. Results: Belonging to the second study period and being beneficiary from the social inclusion and welfare strategy were associated with increased consumption levels of meat, sugary drinks, fruits and vegetables; the consumption of these foods increased with food security. Conclusion: The social inclusion and welfare strategy had a significant positive effect on the diet of the beneficiary population. Nevertheless, it is necessary to encourage efficient public policies that guarantee food and nutrition security in Mexico