The association between food insecurity and academic performance among higher education students: A systematic review

Galseku, Prosper and Keenan, Gregory and Bourke, Lorna and Stevenson, Leo and Cousins, Rosanna and Lingwood, Jamie and Dixon, Hannah (2026) The association between food insecurity and academic performance among higher education students: A systematic review. Current Nutrition Reports, 15. ISSN 2161-3311 (Accepted for Publication)

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Abstract

Purpose of Review
Food insecurity is a concern in Higher Education globally, negatively impacting academic performance, and limiting the potential and aspirations of vulnerable groups of students. Previous reviews have focused primarily on the prevalence of food insecurity in high-income countries. The current review aimed to provide a cross-national synthesis of quantitative evidence of the association between food insecurity and academic performance among students aged 18 years and older. A comprehensive search of six electronic databases was conducted for published peer-reviewed articles up to May 31, 2025. The Joanna Briggs Institute appraisal tools were used to provide a quality assessment of the studies, and evidence synthesis was achieved by a vote-counting approach.

Recent Findings
Forty-seven studies were included; the majority were cross-sectional (N = 46) and conducted in the United States of America (USA) (N = 37). The overall weighted mean prevalence of food insecurity among higher education students across the studies was 44.03%. Evidence of a negative association between food insecurity and academic performance was reported in 43 studies (91.5%), comprising 42 cross-sectional and one longitudinal study (N = 176,947) (USA, Canada, Nigeria, Malaysia, Australia, Iceland & Jordan). The remaining four cross-sectional studies found no significant association between food insecurity and academic performance (USA, Mexico, Saudi Arabia).

Summary
The relatively high prevalence rate reported, the potential setbacks to academic success, and the inconsistencies observed within and across countries suggest that more prospective and comparative studies are needed to elucidate the driving mechanisms of this relationship. This will inform the development of effective, socio-culturally sensitive interventions.

Item Type:	Article
Additional Information and Comments:	© The Author(s) 2026. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made.
Faculty / Department:	Faculty of Human and Digital Sciences > School of Psychology Faculty of Human and Digital Sciences > School of Health and Sport Sciences
SWORD Depositor:	RISE Symplectic
Depositing User:	RISE Symplectic
Date Deposited:	02 Mar 2026 12:27
Last Modified:	02 Mar 2026 12:27
URI:	https://hira.hope.ac.uk/id/eprint/4867

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