Table 1.
Characteristics of people who have injected drugs in the past 6 months (n = 420) by food access
| Total (N = 420) | Inadequate food access (n = 349) | Adequate food access (n = 71) | χ2P value | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| n (col %) | n (col %) | n (col %) | ||
| Sociodemographic data | ||||
| Age, mean (SD) | 35.8 (8.5) | 35.9 (8.6) | 35.4 (8.2) | 0.665 |
| Gender | ||||
| Male | 257 (61.2) | 207 (59.3) | 50 (70.4) | |
| Female | 163 (38.8) | 142 (40.7) | 21 (29.6) | 0.080 |
| Race/ethnicity | ||||
| White, non- Hispanic | 341 (83.6) | 283 (83.5) | 58 (84.1) | |
| Other | 67 (16.4) | 56 (16.5) | 11 (15.9) | 0.906 |
| Sexual minority | 73 (17.4) | 63 (18.1) | 10 (14.1) | 0.416 |
| In a relationship | 193 (46.2) | 155 (44.7) | 38 (53.5) | 0.173 |
| Structural factors | ||||
| Educational attainment | 304 (72.6) | 241 (69.3) | 63 (88.7) | 0.001 |
| Health insurance | 305 (72.6) | 251 (71.9) | 54 (76.1) | 0.476 |
| Homelessness | 235 (56.0) | 218 (62.5) | 17 (23.9) | 0.000 |
| Unemployed | 277 (66.0) | 237 (67.9) | 40 (56.3) | 0.061 |
| Arrest | 141 (33.6) | 125 (35.8) | 16 (22.5) | 0.031 |
| Engaged in transactional sex | 77 (18.3) | 69 (19.8) | 8 (11.3) | 0.096 |
| Substance use | ||||
| Mean number of daily injections | 4.4 (3.9) | 4.5 (4.0) | 3.6 (3.5) | 0.064 |
| Receptive sharing of injection equipment | 257 (61.2) | 230 (65.9) | 27 (38.0) | 0.000 |
| Began injecting as a minor | 83 (19.8) | 68 (19.5) | 15 (21.1) | 0.751 |
| Public drug use | 199 (47.4) | 178 (51.0) | 21 (29.6) | 0.001 |
| Use drugs alone | 133 (31.7) | 94 (26.9) | 39 (54.9) | 0.000 |
| Experienced overdose, past 6 m | 179 (42.6) | 158 (45.3) | 21 (29.6) | 0.015 |
| Drugs used (any route) | ||||
| Heroin | 352 (83.8) | 296 (84.8) | 56 (78.9) | 0.215 |
| Pain relievers (pills) | 179 (42.6) | 155 (44.4) | 24 (33.8) | 0.099 |
| Fentanyl | 233 (55.5) | 202 (57.9) | 31 (43.7) | 0.028 |
| Cocaine | 204 (48.6) | 171 (49.0) | 33 (46.5) | 0.699 |
| Speedball (injection) | 161 (38.3) | 140 (40.1) | 21 (29.6) | 0.096 |
| Crack | 228 (54.3) | 194 (55.6) | 34 (47.9) | 0.235 |
| Crystal methamphetamine | 315 (75.0) | 268 (76.8) | 47 (66.2) | 0.060 |
Significant p-values (P < 0.05) are shown in bold italics
All measures refer to exposure in the past 6 months, except for sociodemographic factors and education level