Food Expenditure and Mental Health: Outcomes from the UK Household Longitudinal Survey

The incidence of mental health problems is increasing in the United Kingdom (UK) and may be associated with lower dietary quality. Food expenditure is an indicator of economic deprivation and a marker of dietary quality with implications for mental health. This analysis considers data collected as part of the United Kingdom Household Longitudinal Survey (UKHLS), also known as ‘Understanding Society’ (2009-2021) (N=388,944) to determine the extent to which food expenditure, both within and outside the household, is associated with mental health, whist controlling for demographic factors. Mental health was measured using the General Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12) with household food expenditure and food expenditure outside the home as outcomes. Controlling for socioeconomic and demographic factors, fixed-effects models indicated that better mental health was associated with greater household food expenditure and with greater food expenditure outside the home and that this association persisted post-lockdown. Among those on lower incomes better mental health was associated with lower food expenditure. When people who identified as white and non-white were modelled separately, better mental health was associated with lower food expenditure within and beyond the household only in those who identified as white. Together these findings imply that the mental health of people residing in the UK, particularly those on lower incomes and those who identify as white, may benefit from spending less of the household budget on food. In promoting mental health, policies are needed to render healthy food more affordable and to reduce other aspects of expenditure that impact upon food budgeting.